In the world of low emission and alternative fuel cars, there are many regulations within the country. While national regulations on car emissions do exist, some states have a lot more strict standards. Some abbreviations about emissions are made. Here’s what one of the most popular of these abbreviations actually mean.
LEV and NLEV are low emission vehicles
The LEV or NLEV standard was instituted at first by California as the “Low Emission Vehicle” standard, and later adopted as the “National Low Emission Vehicle” standard. These standards, for passenger cars, mean emitting less than 3.4 grams per mile of carbon monoxide. Through the 2003 model, this standard is applied.
ULEV stands for Ultra Low Emission Vehicle
Ultra Low Emission Automobile standards apply to automobiles in model years 2003 to 2010. These ULEV passenger cars have to stay under 1.7 grams per pile of carbon monoxide. Alternately, ULEV automobiles are required to emit no more than half of the emissions of comparable model-year cars.
SULEV – Super Ultra Low Emission Vehicle
Super Ultra Low Emission Autos, that are otherwise known as SULEV cars, are required to emit no more than 10 percent of the average emissions of comparable model-year cars. SULEV cars are, most often, ultra-efficient hybrids or alternative-fuel vehicles.
PZEV is a Partial Zero Emission Vehicle
SULEV and PZEV standards are all the same. Nevertheless, in order to qualify as a PZEV, a automobile has to have additional controls on gas evaporation and must maintain low emission levels for 150,000 miles. You will find many ordinary automobiles that qualify as PZEV as of 2001.
ZEV – Zero Emissions Automobile
Zero Emissions Autos are not always necessarily totally “zero emissions.” For instance, a car that charges off of the power grid could be considered ZEV – although the grid still puts out some pollution.
Fuel economy and its standards
Though some states use alphabet soup to describe the efficiency of vehicles, the federal government and EPA use a different system. By 2016, vehicle makers will be required to build cars with an average fuel economy rating of 35.5 miles per gallon.
