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 Automobile
Super Ultra Low Emission Cars, otherwise known as SULEV cars, are required to emit no more than 10 percent of the average emissions of comparable model-year vehicles. SULEV vehicles are, most often, ultra-efficient hybrids or alternative-fuel automobiles.
PZEV is a Partial Zero Emission Vehicle
The standards for a PZEV — Partial Zero Emission Automobile — are the same as for an SULEV car. However, to qualify as a PZEV, a car has to have extra controls on gas evaporation and must maintain low emission levels for 150,000 miles. In 2001, there were numerous engines that qualify as PZEV.
ZEV – Zero Emissions Vehicle
Used mostly to refer to hydrogen-fueled or electric cars, Zero Emissions Vehicles are not always necessarily totally “zero emissions.” For example, a car that charges off of the power grid can be considered ZEV – even though the grid still puts out some pollution.
Fuel Economy 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.
