Rudy’s Performance $10M Fine Cheat Devices

Rudy’s Performance Parts Inc., an automotive components company based in North Carolina, has been hit with a $10 million penalty for selling devices that allow vehicles to bypass federal emissions controls, the U.S. Department of Justice announced. The company will pay a $2.4 million criminal fine, in addition to a $7 million civil fine, for its involvement in manufacturing and selling these illegal devices, commonly known as “defeat devices.”

Rudy’s Performance $10M Fine Cheat Devices : Court Ruling and Penalties

The penalties were handed down by U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden in Washington, D.C., following Rudy’s guilty pleas to conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act. The company will also face three years of organizational probation. The $2.4 million criminal fine follows a separate $7 million civil settlement that Rudy’s and its owner, Aaron Rudolf, reached in North Carolina federal court in July.

In a separate case in April, Rudolf was fined $600,000 and placed on probation for three years for tampering with emissions monitoring devices on approximately 300 diesel trucks.

Emissions Violations

Rudy’s Performance was found to have sold devices known as “delete tuners,” which tamper with the on-board diagnostic systems of vehicles, allowing them to bypass emissions controls. These devices contributed to significant environmental pollution, according to prosecutors. In total, Rudy’s made about $33 million from selling 43,900 of these devices.