Scandal deepens involving Fiat Chrysler Automotive

John Mcelroy from autoline tv is giving FOX 2 his take on the latest automaker scandal, this time involving Fiat Chrysler (FCA).

The department of justice filed a lawsuit on behalf of the epa which claims the Italian - American automaker used undisclosed software to allow excess diesel emissions in more than 100 thousand jeep grand cherokees and dodge ram trucks built between 2014 and 2016.

Mcelroy said the lawsuit puts the automotive company im a bad spot,
"They can argue all they want the fact that the FCA went after them and  Department of Justice (DOJ) is going after them does not look good."

This comes after Volkswagen admitted in 2015 to installing secret sorftware to allow its cars to emit more than 40 times legal pollution levels, costing the automaker billions.

"This is different than what happened with volkswagon. Volkswagon went out to deliberately fool the government, fool the EPA [Environmental Protection Agency]...with this Chrysler in a bit of a gray area they have some software out there they should have notified the EPA about but did not," said Mcelroy.

After what happened with Volkswagon, automakers around the world are now facing diesel scrutiny.

The emission pollution has been linked to harmful smog which can cause cardiovascular and respiratory related problems.

Despite FCA internal emails, the DOJ and EPA reportedly obtained that look at engine development and emissions issues and have raised significant questions.  FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne denies any claims the company engaged in a scheme to install defeat devices to cheat U-S emissions tests.

"Their timing is bad. Volkswagon got caught cheating and there has been all kinds of other car companies getting nailed for things. The justice department is probably going to come down heavy on them," said Mcelroy.