According to a new class action lawsuit, Ford rigged at least 500,000 heavy-duty trucks in order to beat emissions tests. Bloomberg reports that parts supplier Bosch is a co-defendant in the lawsuit as well. Previously, it was Volkswagen that was synonymous with rigging diesel emissions software, so this isn't exactly the news Ford wants to be associated with. Here's what the lawsuit is claiming: 500,000 diesel-powered versions of the F-250 and F-350 Super Duty sold between 2011 and 2017 were programmed by Ford to cheat emissions.

"The vehicle's own on-board diagnostic software indicates emission control system to be operating as Ford intended, even though its real world performance grossly exceeds the standard," said attorney Steve Berman, a managing partner at Hagens Berman, the firm that filed the suit. As for Bosch's involvement, the suit claims Ford worked with the German parts supplier to hide the trucks' inefficiencies in order to maintain overall performance. This lawsuit really couldn't come at a worse time for Ford, whose shares dropped as much as 1 percent in New York trading as a likely result of the filing. You see, Ford just announced its diesel-powered version of the full-size F-150 with a claimed 30 mph highway.

The F-150, as we all know, is vital to Ford's bottom line, and the new diesel version is expected to greatly contribute towards that. The automaker said in a statement in response to the lawsuit that "All Ford vehicles, including those with diesel engines, comply with all U.S. EPA and CARB emissions regulations. Ford vehicles do not have defeat devices. We will defend ourselves against these baseless claims."