European Parliament Seeks Tighter Emission Limits for New Cars

December 15, 2006 // Published as a news service by IHS

The European Parliament (EP) adopted a proposal to gradually set tighter emission limits for cars. The new standards, known as Euro 5 and 6, will become effective Sept. 1, 2009, setting tighter emission limits of particles and of NOx for new cars and vans sold in the European Union (EU) market.

For example, Euro 5 mandates a 80% cut in the emission limit for particulate matters from diesel cars and makes the introduction of particle filters for diesel cars obligatory. Euro 6 will set significantly lower emission limits for NOx emissions from diesel cars (68% lower than today's emission limit) and will enter into force five years after Euro 5 - in 2014.

The EP proposal was based on a compromise reached with the EU Council of Ministers, which is expected to adopt the package shortly.

European Commission (EC) vice president Günter Verheugen, responsible for enterprise and industry policy, said, "The Euro 5 and 6 regulation is important for improving the environmental performance of vehicles. At the same time, it will not hamper the competitiveness of the EU's car industry. It can count on a reasonable lead time to properly plan for and react to these requirements."

Reduced emissions from road transport are seen as an important factor to improve air quality, particularly because the share of diesel vehicles in the overall sales of light-duty vehicles is increasing. As technology has improved, the Euro 5 and 6 regulations are revising the current emission limits for motor vehicles - the Euro 4 standards, which have applied since Jan. 1, 2005.

Euro 5 will enter into force in September 2009 and mandate the introduction of a particle filter for all diesel cars of new models. New diesel cars of an existing car model should be fitted with a particle filter as of January 2011.

Euro 6 will enter into force in 2014. In terms of benefits, the Euro 6 stage will result in an increase of health benefits by approximately 60% to 90% relative to Euro 5.

The new legislation also requires information on vehicle repairs to be easily available to independent repairers. The environmental performance of vehicles is not only important when they leave the factory, but must be maintained throughout their lives. Without practical access to repair and maintenance information, this cannot be done. Car producers will have a concomitant responsibility to make sure that cars can be properly driven, repaired and maintained, wherever they may be throughout the internal market. This is important for protecting independent operators, most of them small to medium-sized enterprises, from gradually disappearing from the market due to their inability to service modern cars without access to the relevant information.

Source: European Commission.

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• SAE Digital Library - includes technical papers addressing emissions, emissions control systems and emissions testing.
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Top Individual Documents (available online from the IHS Store)

• EU 2006/51/EC - COMMISSION DIRECTIVE amending for the purposes of adapting to technical progress Annex I to Directive 2005/55/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Annexes IV and V to Directive 2005/78/EC as regards requirements for the emission control monitoring system for use in vehicles and exemptions for gas engines.
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