Overview

• France Nature Environnement, CLCV and ClientEarth filed their challenge on Wednesday at the Paris administrative court, accusing the state of failing to remove hundreds of thousands of cheat‑equipped vehicles from circulation.
• The groups say they have formally pressed authorities since 2023 and provided information to identify problematic models.
• Investigations by France’s fraud watchdog DGCCRF in 2016 documented nitrogen oxide gaps of up to 377% for certain Renault models between lab tests and real‑world use.
• A 2017 DGCCRF report described a global strategy at PSA to produce fraudulent engines and then market them.
• The Paris prosecutor has requested four fraud trials targeting Volkswagen, Peugeot‑Citroën, Renault and Fiat‑Chrysler, with investigating judges to decide on proceedings, and the manufacturers contest the cases.