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Which country has cleanest automobiles? Dirtiest?

by William Atkins

Friday, 16 November 2007

According to an independent report, based on 2006 statistics, the European Federation for Transport and Environment (EFTE) has found that France’s PSA Peugeot Citroën SA manufacturer sells the cleanest cars. Who's next and who is last and the dirtiest?

The webpage for the EFTE, an independent group urging for cleaner cars, states, “French, Italian and Japanese carmakers extended their lead over German rivals last year in the race to deliver fuel efficient and low emission vehicles.”

The first-place cars produced by the French PSA emit, on average, 229 grams of carbon dioxide (CO₂) into the atmosphere for every mile they travel. This is the lowest carbon-dioxide-emitting rate of any car company tested.

Italy was second with its Fiat SpA, which emitted 232 grams/mile of CO₂.

The French were again high on the list, at third place, with its Renault SA company, which produced 237 grams/mile of CO₂.

Japan was in fourth place with its Toyota Motor Corporation, with 246 grams/mile, while the Honda Motor Company (Japan) was in fifth place at 248 grams/mile.

The United States was in sixth place with the General Motors Corporation, which averaged 253 grams per mile of carbon dioxide.

The Ford Motor Company (United States) was in seventh place at 261 grams/mile. Volkswagen AG (Germany) and Suzuki Motor Corporation (Japan) tied for eighth/ninth place at 268 grams/mile.

In tenth place was Hyundai (South Korea) at 269, eleventh was Nissan (Japan) at 271, and twelfth was Mazda (Japan) at 279.

The Worst Record with Carbon Dioxide Pollution

The losers—those with the worst carbon dioxide pollution record—among the fourteen major car companies in the world are: in thirteenth place BMW AG (Germany) at 297 grams/mile and in fourteenth place DaimlerChrysler (AG), now Daimler AG (Germany), at 303 grams/mile.

The director of the European Federation for Transport and Environment, Joe Dings, said that reducing the weight of automobiles is critical to cutting emissions of carbon dioxide further and to improving gas mileage.

As reported by Constant Brand, Associated Press writer, on PhysOrg.com, Mr. Dings is reported to have, “…called on car manufacturers that scored lower to follow the lead of French and Italian car makers to reduce the weight of automobiles, which it said helps in cutting emissions.”

The EFTE press release on the rankings titled “Study reveals increasing climate divide between
Europe's carmakers” appears at: http://www.transportenvironment.org/docs/Publications/2007/2007-11_car_company_co2_press_release.pdf.

The full November 2007 EFTE report (“Reducing CO2 Emissions from New Cars: A Study of Major Car Manufacturers' Progress in 2006”) is found at: http://www.transportenvironment.org/docs/Publications/2007/2007-11_car_company_co2_report.pdf.

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