Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes wants to hear from residents who bought Dodge RAM diesel trucks that her office says in a lawsuit were fraudulently advertised as using "super clean" technology.
Mayes' office filed a lawsuit Thursday against leading engine manufacturer Cummins, Inc., and FCA US LLC, the auto manufacturer formerly known as Chrysler Group that makes Dodge trucks.
The lawsuit alleges the companies falsely advertised the pickup trucks as better for the environment when they had installed devices on the vehicles to skirt emissions testing standards. The pickups actually pumped tons of pollution-causing nitrogen oxides into the air, the lawsuit says.
"By promoting their vehicles as eco-friendly while secretly violating emissions standards, Cummins and FCA have betrayed the trust of Arizonans and violated our state’s consumer protection laws," the Democratic attorney general said in a statement.
Representatives of Cummins or FCA US did not respond to requests for comment on the lawsuit Thursday.
Indiana-based Cummins settled similar allegations with the U.S. Department of Justice in January, agreeing to pay about $2 billion in penalties, including nearly $1.68 billion to the federal government.
It was the largest civil fine ever under the Clean Air Act, according to the Department of Justice. The case was also brought by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and environmental regulators in California. The settlement agreement, in which Cummins did not admit wrongdoing, required the company to recall and replace about 630,000 trucks with the emissions-defeating technology.
Mayes' lawsuit seeks to ensure Arizonans who bought the trucks may also benefit. The case, filed Thursday in Maricopa County Superior Court, seeks civil fines of $10,000 per "willful violation" of Arizona's Consumer Fraud Act.
Her office said state motor vehicle records show about 23,600 Arizonans purchased the vehicles. Affected vehicles are Dodge RAM 2500 and 3500 trucks with 6.7-liter diesel engines from model year 2013 to 2019.
The attorney general's office asked anyone in Arizona who purchased those pickups to file a consumer complaint online at www.azag.gov/complaints/consumer.
A utility regulator and clean energy advocate before she was elected attorney general in 2022, Mayes has previously used her office's power to tackle environmental concerns.
She went to court trying to stop the development of a mine in Chino Valley, and is considering whether state nuisance laws can be used to prevent over pumping of groundwater. She has also been critical of the Arizona Department of Water Resources for not following groundwater management laws.
Reach reporter Stacey Barchenger at stacey.barchenger@arizonarepublic.com or 480-416-5669.
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