VW to Add Particulate Filters to Gasoline-Fueled Cars

Automakers are under constant pressure to reduce emissions. They have been doing a pretty good job of it, and as a side effect, cars are both more powerful and more fuel efficient than ever before. But as they get better at it, the standards keep getting lower, and there is less and less to remove from the exhaust gasses. Volkswagen's latest announcement suggests that they think the next place to cut back is soot.

Diesels have long taken criticism for the amount of soot and other particulates they produce and as a result most new models have a filter to catch the small particles of carbon before they go out the tailpipe. But their gasoline counterparts have mostly gone unnoticed when it comes to particulates. VW has announced that they are planning to change that, by adding a particulate filter to all TSI and TFSI gas engines in 2017. Dr. Ulrich Eichhorn, Head of Group Research and Development for VW stated that "following increases in efficiency and lower CO2 output, we are now bringing about a sustained reduction in the emission levels of our modern petrol engines by fitting particulate filters as standard."

VW claims that independent testing shows that their EU 6 emissions-compliant diesel and gasoline cars are already the cleanest on the market, but the damage to their image over "dieselgate" means that they need to stay ahead of the competition and regain trust in the cleanliness of their cars. Adding emissions control features is one way to do that.