FRANKFURT — Mitsubishi is being probed by German prosecutors for suspected use of illegal defeat devices installed in diesel engines.
The authorities are looking at Mitsubishi’s 1.6-liter and 2.2-liter 4-cylinder Euro 5 and Euro 6 diesel engines and are asking drivers who acquired cars with the engines since 2014 to contact police.
Police and prosecutors on Tuesday raided 10 sites across Germany. Premises have been searched in Frankfurt, Hanover and Regensburg in Germany as part of the probe, the Frankfurt prosecutor’s office said.
Three of the sites raided belong to Continental. The supplier said it is a cooperating witness in the probe.
A Mitsubishi spokesman in Germany confirmed that it was under investigation but gave no further details. As an importer Mitsubishi Europe was not involved in the development or production of the company’s cars, the spokesman told Automobilwoche, a sister publication of Automotive News Europe.
Officials are investigating a member of staff at an international carmaker for fraud, as well as a unit of an international car dealership company, and two auto suppliers as part of the probe, the Frankfurt prosecutor’s office said.
The auto industry has been rattled by allegations that software is being used in diesel engines to cheat on emissions tests. The scandal started almost five years ago when U.S. regulators disclosed they were probing Volkswagen over the issue. Since then, investigations have mushroomed across the globe.
Bloomberg contributed to this report