Jan. 30, 2023 – An auto repair shop in Sibley, Iowa, has been caught making the emissions controls in vehicles “inoperative,” KIWA radio reports, and will have to face penalties.
The shop, Turbocharged Performance LLC, disabled emissions controls by “tampering with car engines” and installing what are called “defeat devices.” This was done at least 581 times.
“The installation of defeat devices or any illegal tampering of auto emissions controls is both a violation of federal law and a significant contributor of harmful air pollution,” said David Cozad, director of EPA Region 7’s Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Division.
Turbocharged Performance will have to pay the EPA $30,000, as well as ensure no more defeat devices are sold and destroy any that exist.
Disabling emissions controls is not only a violation of the federal Clean Air Act but contributes to “significantly higher releases of nitrogen oxides and particulate matter,” EPA officials say, which can cause air quality to deteriorate and illness in people.
