Driving Emission of Diesel Cars
Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH), a German environmental NGO, recently released a report on the real driving emissions of 39 car models. The NGO conducted tests from May to August this year and said that only three of the models satisfied the emissions criteria although the tests were conducted in summer, when the amount of nitrogen oxide emissions is relatively large.
According to the report, the Mercedes Benz E220d released late last year and equipped with a new diesel engine emitted nitrogen oxide equivalent to 60% of the reference value. The other two that made the cut are the Audi Q3 2.0 TDI Quattro registered in March this year with an improved engine (60% of the reference value) and the Volkswagen T6 2.0 TDI (90%).
Meanwhile, the nitrogen oxide emissions of the Qashqai dCi 1.6 and the Scenic 1.6 dCi of the Renault-Nissan Group amounted to 850% and 820% of the reference value, respectively. The percentage is 530% for the Hyundai Santa Fe 2.2 CRDi and 410% for the Hyundai Tucson 2.0 CRDi.
“German automakers are improving their diesel engines in spite of the Volkswagen scandal because of the still high demand for diesel cars,” said an industry insider, adding, “Some of the others finding it difficult to do so are likely to veer towards electric vehicles, hybrid cars and the like.”