emissions


EPA reverses decision, approves California's greenhouse gas emissions waiver

The saga of California's greenhouse gas waiver has come to an end with the EPA deciding that the state can indeed enforce its own GHG emissions standards for new motor vehicles. This means that, at least between now (with current model year vehicles) and when the 2012 MY vehicles arrive, California and the 13 states (and D.C.) that have adopted its rules will use the stricter emission standards to regulate vehicles. In the EPA's statement on the decision, it says it used "the law and science as its guide," in order to "tackle air pollution and ... Read more →

Let's Make a Deal: Automakers reportedly reach agreement with lawmakers on carbon cap legislation Jeremy Korzeniewski

Now that the U.S. has officially concluded that greenhouse gasses are harmful to human health, it's time to do something about them. One major hurdle standing in the way of the U.S. implementing ...

STUDY: 88% of Americans believe hybrid leadership is crucial to U.S. - Do you? [w/POLL] Chris Shunk

We Americans want hybrid leadership. We want to reduce our dependence on foreign oil. Trouble is, most of us aren't willing to pay for it. Johnson Controls surveyed 2309 adults on all matters hybrid, ...

REPORT: CAFE fuel economy standards to rise 8% by 2011 Chris Paukert

The nation's Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards will swell to 27.3 miles-per-gallon by 2011. That's the word coming out of Washington, where the U.S. Department of Transportation is expected to ...

REPORT: EPA declares greenhouse gases a public danger, may be preamble to new emissions laws Chris Shunk

According to the Detroit News, the Environmental Protection Agency has taken a likely step towards stricter emissions standards, as it has asked the White House Office of Management and Budget to ...

Germany joins EU in taxing CO2 emissions 9 months ago on Autoblog

European car ads are always mentioning how many grams of CO2 a car emits because more than twelve European countries tax drivers based on those emissions. Germany, home to a cadre of automakers for which CO2 parsimony is not a prime consideration, has held out from the carbon dioxide taxation ...

Obama faces immediate challenges with Detroit 10 months ago on Autoblog

To be fair, the new president faces a lot of immediate challenges. But when it comes to the auto industry, the biggest four challenges could be the bridge loans, fuel economy mandates, the EPA vs The California 14, and the board of czars that will oversee the fortunes of GM and Chrysler. The ...

EPA under Obama will revisit state emission laws 10 months ago on Autoblog

The decision on whether or not to allow states to enforce limits on vehicle greenhouse gas emissions is moving back to center stage under the incoming Obama administration. Lisa Jackson, the President-elect's nominee for EPA administrator, has promised to "immediately revisit" the issue once she is ...

BMW learns buyers want to save money, not planet 1 year ago on Autoblog

BMW carried out a survey of 2,068 motorists in Great Britain and found that no matter what motorists claim to want, what they really want is a BMW. While 20% of respondents said they look at CO2 levels when they research new cars, 75% said they'd only buy a car if they saved money. Which really ...

Saab Australia busted for misleading green claims, ordered to plant LOTS of trees 1 year ago on Autoblog

Marketers have been known to make claims that test our good sense, our gullibility and our patience. But in a field in which it's often the best story -- not the best product -- that wins, some of the more unsightly details can get left out when making a pitch. Nevertheless, there is still, as ...

Carmakers try different ways to grow green 1 year ago on Autoblog

Now that making cars cleaner and more efficient is a mainstream proposition, the only questions are how each carmaker plans to do it. BMW's Efficient Dynamics has allowed it to lower it's CO2 emissions more than any other automaker. In a show of how seriously all automakers are taking the issue, ...

Endangered Species: Europe's sportscar makers worried about the future 1 year ago on Autoblog

With the European Union tightening restrictions on carbon emissions, danger has been spelled out in big bright letters for the sportscar-makers we know and love. The bulk of the world's best supercar manufacturers – including Ferrari, Lamborghini, Lotus, Aston Martin and Porsche – reside ...

Ferrari cutting CO2 output by 40%, hybrid sports car in the works 1 year ago on Autoblog

Mainstream automakers are faced with the reality of improving the efficiency and cleanliness of everyday vehicles, but companies like Porsche and Lamborghini say drastic change would effect the underlying character of their products. Ferrari apparently doesn't feel the same way, as the exotic ...

States start paying people to buy new, cleaner cars 1 year ago on Autoblog

All of the clean new vehicles in the world won't amount to much if they don't replace the older, dirtier fleet of cars currently on the roads. For this reason, some U.S. states are beginning to offer programs which pay drivers to turn in their old clunkers for new, cleaner cars and trucks. In Texas, ...

Lamborghini CEO: Emissions be damned, we'll make big engines 1 year ago on Autoblog

How can a company like Lamborghini be expected to adapt to tightening emissions regulations? It's a reasonable question, and according to the company's chief executive Stephan Winkelmann, it simply can't. In an interview with Automotive News, the supercar exec justifies that its production is so ...

CARB offering compromise on emissions regulations? 1 year ago on Autoblog

After protests by California auto dealers, the head of California's Air Resources Board (CARB) said she is willing to discuss modifying one aspect of the state's stringent emission regulations. Mary Nichols, CARB Chairwoman, told reporters at an SAE Government/Industry meeting that she is open to ...

Audi to offer electric vehicles within ten years 1 year ago on Autoblog

Audi has been quietly going about the business of preparing its lineup for a green future, with cleaner and more efficient diesels in Europe, and oil-burners scheduled for the US in the near future. While the German automaker realizes diesel will be big in the next 10 years, it's also planning for ...

Bentley wants to slash CO2 by two-thirds 1 year ago on Autoblog

Click above for high-res gallery of the 2009 Bentley Brooklands British racing green could take on a whole new meaning if Bentley is able to achieve its goal of reducing CO2 emissions by two-thirds to just 120 grams per kilometer by 2012. Currently, all of its vehicles emit more than 400 g/km, no ...

Cali may cancel smog exemption from pre-1976 cars 1 year ago on Autoblog

In California, home of the strictest car emissions regulations in the U.S., cars produced before 1976 do not need to undergo smog testing. California State Senator Dean Florez has proposed legislation that would remove that exemption for cars registered in the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air ...

New York 2008: Mercedes burns oil and rubber 1 year ago on Autoblog

Click above for high-res gallery from Daimler's press conference Just like any good political campaign, Mercedes came to the New York Auto Show touting nothing much as a whole lot. Actually, the faux political rally might have been less than compelling with its old news, but the new M Class ...

Round Three: Mayor of London rejects Porsche, we're going to court 1 year ago on Autoblog

Ding, ding... Round Three! When the city of London decided in November 2006 to tax gas-guzzling, emission-spewing vehicles (aka sports cars), we knew someone would put up a fight. It didn't take long before Porsche, the enthusiast-oriented German automaker, stepped into the ring. Round One ...

EPA officially defends denial of CA request to regulate emissions 1 year ago on Autoblog

California and 18 other states have been waiting patiently for a reason why the EPA denied them emissions waivers even after the government agency's own scientists recommended that the waivers be granted. EPA chief Stephen Johnson finally provided that answer last Friday, which allowed the 19 ...

Science magazine declares ethanol worse for the Earth than fossil fuels 1 year ago on Autoblog

Jon Markman at MSN Money doesn't hold back when he says "Corn-based ethanol production is sure to go down as one of the greatest mistakes ever in U.S. energy policy." It's even more provoking when he writes "replacing fossil fuels with corn-based ethanol would double greenhouse gas emissions over ...

Porsche steps up, will legally fight London's gas guzzler tax 1 year ago on Autoblog

It's the mayor of London in one corner and Porsche, the maker of thoroughbred sports cars, in the other. In the green trunks, Mayor Ken Livingstone has decreed that a $50 daily tax shall be levied against all gas-guzzling, emission-spewing vehicles that drive through his city beginning in ...

GM bets $69 million on diesel plant in Ohio 1 year ago on Autoblog

New emissions standards in 2010 will make things too stringent for GM's Duramax diesel, in its current form, to make the grade. To help its prize student pass the looming tests, GM is investing $69 million in its DMAX plant (a joint venture diesel engine factory in Moraine, Ohio) for plant ...

Speed bumps are bad for the planet 1 year ago on Autoblog

Britain's Automobile Association has found another bump in the road to environmental kindness: speed bumps and really low speed limits. They took a car that got 58-mpg running a constant 30-MPH, and ran it over speedbumps at the Millbrook Proving Ground, slowing down and speeding up for each bump. ...

Corvette C7 in holding pattern due to CAFE regs 1 year ago on Autoblog

The Impala isn't the only RWD car stuck in limbo while GM waits for the fog of new CAFE standards to lift: Motor Trend reports that now the C7 Corvette program has been put on hold, as well. We reported yesterday that the next generation C7 Corvette will bow out of the horsepower brinkmanship game ...

Canada plans new fuel economy standards at least as good as U.S. 1 year ago on Autoblog

Canada's response to America's latest energy legislation and CAFE standards: a resounding "Meh, whatever. Call us when you're serious." The land of the maple leaf has declared that the new U.S. standards simply don't go far enough. Said the nation's transport minister, "We welcome the U.S. goal, but ...

A1GP switches to ethanol mix, ships fuel to New Zealand 1 year ago on Autoblog

Switching a racing series to ethanol? Smart. Shipping the ethanol around the world to show how green that racing series is? Less so. A1GP has announced that its upcoming race in New Zealand will mark the inauguration of the series' switch to E30 Hiperflo ethanol-gasoline blend, which, as organizers ...

Says Rick Wagoner: Volt might come in 2010... or it might not 1 year ago on Autoblog

Bob Lutz has staked a fair amount of his and GM's reputation on the Volt. Even though he has said since the beginning that the Volt needs battery technology that isn't ready for the mass market yet, he also said that the Volt would go on sale by the end of 2010. Rick Wagoner, though, in a 50-minute ...

Sixteen states tell the EPA: We'll see you in court 1 year ago on Autoblog

The new CAFE legislation contains a provision to keep individual states from coming up with their own standards. California applied to the EPA for a waiver to enforce its own stricter emissions standards. When the EPA administrator, Stephen Johnson, planned to deny that waiver, Johnson's in-house ...

'Splain Yourself: Senator invites EPA chief to California 1 year ago on Autoblog

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Stephen Johnson (shown above) has found himself with few friends after denying California's request for a waiver to regulate its own emissions. The denial was issued shortly after President Bush signed the new energy bill into law, leaving some to ...

Mr. Porsche goes to Washington: Low-volume CAFE classification could save Porsche millions 1 year ago on Autoblog

The Senate bill to raise CAFE changes the definition of a low-volume manufacturer from a company that produces 10,000 cars worldwide per year, to a company that has less than 0.4-percent of the US market -- which would be about 64,000 vehicles currently. Porsche sold 34,227 cars and SUVs in the U.S. ...

Subaru considering offering non-boxer, non-AWD models 2 years ago on Autoblog

Subarus have sported standard AWD since the 80s, well before most other automakers even bothered with the technology. That, partnered with its boxer engine, goes together like peanut butter and jelly. But the Japanese automaker has to begin worrying about fuel efficiency and emissions, so the two ...

Court removes wind from automakers' sales in Vermont emissions fight 2 years ago on Autoblog

General Motors and the former DaimlerChrysler have been handed a disappointment in a Boston district court. At issue was Vermont's adoption of California's carbon dioxide standard, which requires cars and light trucks to reduce their emissions of the greenhouse gas by 30 percent. GM and DCX brought ...

Car drives start-stop equipped MINI 2 years ago on Autoblog

Car magazine has test driven the new MINI Cooper 1.6 with BMW's start/stop technology and likes it a lot. The system on the manual transmission car requires you to put the car in neutral when you come to a stop in order for it to work, which does seem a bit funky to us -- we don't know anyone who ...

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Autoblog Podcast #153: With Phil Berg

Phil Berg puts his reputation on the line and hangs with the podcast crew.

 
 

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