In the business section of today's newspaper was an article written by Michael Biesecker, published by the
AP, titled “
Harley pays $15M in pollution suit”, subtitled: “
Zoom-zoom goes boom-boom”. (kind of catchy, huh?)
The article states that “H-D manufactured and sold about 340,000 Screaming Eagle Pro Super Tuners since 2008 that allowed users to modify a motorcycle's emissions control system to increase power and performance, according to court filing by the Justice Department and Environmental Protection Agency." (Well, their bikes did need the extra power and performance.)
The article goes on to say:
“The racing tuners, which the prosecutors said were illegal 'defeat devices' that circumvented emissions controls, also increased the amounts of such harmful air pollutants and nitrogen oxide spewing from the bikes' tailpipes. The government said Harley-Davidson also made and sold more than 12,000 motorcycles of various models between 2006 and 2008 with the illegal tuners pre-installed on them by dealers that were not properly certified as meeting clean air standards.”H-D says that the tuners in question were designed for use on specialized track racing bikes and not intended for use on public roads. (That is sure a lot of Harley baggers and choppers being raced in off-road competitions by their owners.) H-D agreed not to sell any more defeat devices and they promise that all further motorcycles that they manufacture will comply with government pollution regulations.
Now here is the interesting part of the article:
“Given Harley-Davidson's prominence in the industry, this is a very significant step toward our goal of stopping the sale of illegal after-market defeat devices that cause harmful pollution on our roads and in our communities”, said Assistant Attorney General John C. Cruden, head of the Justice Department's environmental division. “Anyone else who manufacturers, sells, or installs these types of illegal products should take heed of Harley-Davidson's corrective actions and immediately stop violating the law” 
(Hint, hint, Power Commander.)
