In Wake of Justice Dept. Settlement, FCA, Cummins Hit with Class Action Over Illegal Ram 2500, 3500 Emissions Control Devices

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A proposed class action lawsuit accuses automaker FCA US and parts supplier Cummins of making, marketing and selling 2013-2023 Ram 2500 and 3500 diesel trucks equipped with undisclosed and unauthorized emissions control devices meant to illegally bypass, render inoperative, or otherwise slash the effectiveness of the vehicles’ emissions control systems. 

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The 44-page complaint shares that the emissions control devices in the Ram 2500s and 3500s at issue, unbeknownst to the general public, allowed the trucks, equipped with Cummins 6.7-liter diesel engines, to “pass” emissions inspections while they continued to emit “illegally high levels of pollutants” during real-world driving. 

“At no point did Defendants disclose to Plaintiffs or Class Members that any of the Class Trucks contain Emissions Control Devices,” the suit alleges, accusing FCA and Cummins of intentionally and knowingly concealing material facts with the intent to mislead the public. 

The case was filed in California federal court on December 27, 2023, days after Attorney General Merrick Garland announced that the Justice Department had reached a settlement agreement with Cummins over allegations that the company, over the last 10 years, had illegally altered hundreds of thousands of diesel engines with “defeat devices” to sidestep emissions tests, in violation of the federal Clean Air Act. 

Per the settlement, Cummins will pay $1.65 billion, the largest civil penalty ever secured by the Justice Department under the Clean Air Act, and the second-largest environmental penalty ever secured, the lawsuit states. 

According to a Justice Department press release, Cummins allegedly installed defeat devices on 630,000 model year 2013-2019 Ram 2500 and 3500 pickup truck engines and “undisclosed auxiliary emissions control devices” on 330,000 2019-2023 Ram 2500 and 3500 pickup truck engines. 

The lawsuit relays that although Attorney General Garland made clear that FCA and Cummins’ alleged conduct aimed to cheat federal environmental laws, consumers who bought impacted trucks suffered “an ascertainable economic loss.” 

“That loss can be measured in a number of ways, including, at a minimum, by the premium Class Members paid for a diesel vehicle over a comparable gas vehicle,” the case says. 

Neither FCA nor Cummins, nor any of the companies’ dealers or agents, informed consumers that the existence of the emissions “defeat devices” would illegally hamper the function of their trucks’ emissions control systems and produce “illegally high pollution,” the filing adds. 

This is not the first instance in which Cummins engines have come under scrutiny for producing excess emissions, the case relays. In 2018, the company recalled more than 500,000 medium- and heavy-duty trucks due to excess nitrogen oxide emissions, the filing says. However, the lawsuit states that the most recent allegations against Cummins are “much more serious” given that the trucks recalled in 2018 remain equipped with the alleged defeat devices. 

The lawsuit looks to cover all persons or entities in the United States who own, owned, lease and/or leased a 2013-2023 model year Ram 2500 and/or Ram 3500 pickup equipped with a Cummins 6.7-liter diesel engine. 

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