Audi India Suspends Sales For Q5

Automotive Research Authority of India (ARAI) is a government-run body that tests cars on various aspects before they are put on sale for customers. One of the tests conducted is to check the emissions that a car produces. The emissions from a car includes substances such as hydrocarbons (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx). Every substance has its defined acceptable limit under the Bharat Stage-IV norms. It is the NOx readings where, according to ARAI, the Q5 failed to qualify as per the prescribed levels.

With the dieselgate news still quite fresh in the automotive industry, VW-owned Audi has halted the sales of the Q5 in India a as precautionary measure. The higher NOx readings were thanks to the air getting trapped into the cooling system. Audi India say that it will update the software calibration to address the NOx emissions issue before it puts the SUV back on sale in December 2016.

This setback for the Indian arm of the German car firm is a big blow as Q5 has a good fan base in the country. The pause in the Q5’s sales means the company will also miss out on the upcoming festive season in India. While Audi faces fierce rivalry from its German counterparts Mercedes-Benz and BMW with their GLC and X3 SUVs respectively, Volvo is slowly, but steadily gaining popularity in the same segment with its XC-60 utility vehicle.

The diesel motor powering the Q5 has nothing to do with the engine family scrutinized under the dieselgate, which VW is tackling in various markets around the world with free fixing of cars and compensating regulatory authorities with massive fines. In India, VW recently started the recall for its affected range of cars with the previous-gen Skoda Superb diesel. Once completed, the German car firm will initiate recalls for Audi and VW cars equipped with the same EA-189 diesel engine.

Audi is also readying itself to unveil the new-gen Q5 SUV at the upcoming Paris Motor Show.