New cars are using “vastly more fuel on the road than in laboratory tests, and on-road noxious-gas emissions from diesel cars are over the legal limit,” according to the Australian Automobile Association (AAA)(
www.aaa.asn.au).
The research, conducted by technical consulting firm Abmarc, examined 17 new and commonly available cars in the past 10 months. The cars tested had all driven at least 2,000km, and were 2014 models or newer.
The vehicles were tested twice, from a cold start and a warm start, and were driven along the same route in Melbourne.
AAA chief executive Michael Bradley said: “These results are bad news for Australian consumers looking for good information on which to base their car-buying decisions.
“They also place a huge question mark over the fuel and cost savings that the federal government is offering Australians, under its proposals to introduce tougher vehicle-emissions restrictions.”
A spokesman for Urban Infrastructure Minister Paul Fletcher said it is “well known that pollutants emitted in laboratory conditions would generally be lower than on-road driving tests”.