Leading car makers in the spotlight over emission tests
DIESEL cars made by Volvo, Renault, and Hyundai would all fail tougher new emission tests, a study claims as other manufacturers face being dragged into the Volkswagen scandal.
The examiners who first raised concerns about VW discovered in previous research how Volvo diesels were producing up to 15 times the EU emission limits that will be in place by 2018.
The International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) said the three car makers “would very likely be unfit to pass” the new rules.
The ICCT study found that Volvo, Renault, and Hyundai all passed emissions limits under current lab conditions approved by the EU. But Volvo’s figures escalated to 14.6 times over current limits when subjected to the more rigorous test. Last night Volvo said a faulty car had been used.
Renault was 8.8 times over and Hyundai was 6.9 times over when tested against the 2018 regulations.
The report concluded: “These vehicles would very likely be unfit to pass the RDE [the forthcoming Real Driving Emissions] test, and would thus be left out of the EU market (unless they had their NOX [nitrogen oxide] control systems recalibrated) if RDE type-approval criteria applied today.”
Despite the storm surrounding the company, Volkswagen vehicles scored well in both tests.
BMW, which yesterday vehemently denied manipulating or rigging diesel emissions tests, also performed well under current and future regulations.
Testers were only able to carry out checks on single vehicles from Volvo, Renault, and Hyundai, while other manufacturers had tests on multiple models.
The ICCT said that the results “point to a serious compliance problem for NOX emissions” from diesel passenger cars. Car makers can use a range of techniques to ensure that their cars perform better under test conditions than when driven by ordinary drivers.
Experts warned that VW may have been sending engines for testing that were different to those that feature in the showrooms.
Peter De Nayer, a former AA inspector and one of Britain’s leading independent testers, told The Daily Tele
graph: “The trouble is the authorities have tried to do emissions testing on the cheap. Cars should be lifted at random from showrooms, when in reality they are supplied by the manufacturers, which leaves open the possibility for the cars to be specially prepared like this.
“This isn’t new. There have long been rumours that some manufacturers switch off certain electrical systems on test cars, such as those that control the airbags, to reduce the load on the engine. And the current test only requires a car to accelerate from 30 to 70mph in two and a half minutes, so you could put the engine in a more efficient setting that makes it completely gutless without the testers realising anything was wrong.”
Mr De Nayer suspects that VW has been sending its cleaner Euro 6 model to testers in America while its older Euro 5 models were still being sold.
Hyundai said last night that “none of our vehicles are fitted with any type of software intended to manipulate regulatory emissions tests results”.
The carmaker added: “Hyundai Motor abides by the testing regulations and methods of each region where it sells cars, including Europe.”
Volvo said: “Analysis shows that a faulty car was used for this test; a correct Volvo would never have generated these results. The same agency tested several normal Volvos previously, using similar methods, generating normal results… The car’s emission control system was out of order.”
Renault was contacted but failed to send a comment last night.