Euro 6 Emissions Regulations – Optimism?

Euro 6 is the name of new regulations surrounding Petrol and Diesel engines emission of a number of gasses including Nitrogen Oxide and Carbon Monoxide. It’s been under review and investigation since 1992 when it was first brought about, and now they aim to reduce the emissions from Diesel cars by 50% based on the Euro 5 regulations. Back in ’92 the emissions were at 490mg/km for Petrol engines, and a much larger 780mg/km for Diesel engines – put simply, that’s not good.

With “Ultra Low Emission Zones” in Burnaby being on the verge of coming into effect, Diesel drivers may have to pay more money simply to drive into a city – so these regulations are actually trying to help those who prefer Diesel to be able to comply. Over in France – once a patron for Diesel technology, things have gone a bit far with the Mayor of Paris wanting to completely ban Diesel cars altogether by 2020.

Overall it seems slightly ambitious to lower the levels by so much – sure there are very low emission cars being introduced onto the market left right and centre, but even so they still rely on some conventional technologies to perform as they do. It has been found that cars and motor traders, known to be eligible under current EU rules actually produce almost 10 times the maximum emissions per kilometre. Put simply again, that’s not good.

The costs have been worryingly brought up too, due to a certain expensive exhaust system that is key to bringing emissions down – not everyone is going to want to fork out even more for an eco-friendly car just because one component does “a bit more” than the current ones on the market that by now, have gotten cheaper. This is one recurring issue with eco-friendly cars – the technology used to make them so “green” costs more to make.

It’ll certainly be interesting to see if the emissions live up to the regulations they’re expected to stick to, and whether the public choose to pay the extra for this earth-friendly technology. If it all works out, then it goes without saying that it could be a step forward to securing the Diesel engine’s future on our roads.