The United States Environmental Protection Agency has long waged war against the automotive aftermarket for modifications that violate the Clean Air Act. Enforcement shot up drastically around the turn of the decade, with the federal government reprimanding one shop owner after another for selling products marked as “off-road-use only.” Courts ruled that some must pay up to seven figures in civil penalties and criminal fines, while others were even sentenced to jail time. The industry’s most vocal members have staunchly opposed this from the start, and now, the Department of Justice has announced it will no longer pursue criminal charges for tampering with a vehicle’s onboard diagnostics system.
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