4 ms·

Volkswagen cheated to try to get a less expensive system in place. DPFs and urea injection are pretty well proven technologies and work pretty well.

Reason077 10y ago
They work well enough on new vehicles coming out of the factory. The real problem is 5-10 years later when these systems need repair or replacement. For many the economic temptation to have them "nulled" is too great (fuel efficiency is improved by removing the DPF) - and that once-clean diesel is now a toxic, polluting nightmare. This is a huge problem in the UK - and why we need to phase out diesel in private/light motor vehicles.
- icebraining 10y ago
  How do they pass the emissions test?
  - Reason077 10y ago
    In the UK, there is no emissions test for particulate or NOx emissions, other than the subjective "does it emit visible smoke?". A visual inspection for the presence of the DPF is required, but this is easily defeated by installing a look-alike "null" filter. The people doing the MOT testing can be pretty shady anyway. Since any mechanic can operate as a testing facility, it's often the same people who remove DPFs that will then pass them in the MOT inspection.
    - icebraining 10y ago
      Seems like fixing that system would be more sensible than outlawing diesel cars, no?
      - Reason077 10y ago
        I agree with you. A strict emissions test regime would be a good first step. But politicians have known about this for years and little has been done - apparently it's a too hard (or too expensive) problem to fix. The thing is, even brand-new "clean" diesels are still worse polluters, for toxic particulates and NOx, compared to petrol and petrol-electric hybrid vehicles. London already has a disincentive on diesels coming into effect by 2019, when pre-Euro 6 (i.e. older than September 2015) diesel vehicles will be subject to a £12.50/day charge to drive in London. There are calls to extend this to cover all diesel vehicles, eventually leading to a total ban: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/jul/18/ban-diesel-cars-in-london-thinktank-urges https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/jul/18/ban-dies... Licensing of new diesel taxis will also soon be prohibited in London, and all single-deck busses will be zero-emission by 2020 (and double-deck busses will, at minimum, be hybrids).

Reason077 10y ago

They work well enough on new vehicles coming out of the factory. The real problem is 5-10 years later when these systems need repair or replacement. For many the economic temptation to have them "nulled" is too great (fuel efficiency is improved by removing the DPF) - and that once-clean diesel is now a toxic, polluting nightmare. This is a huge problem in the UK - and why we need to phase out diesel in private/light motor vehicles.

icebraining 10y ago
How do they pass the emissions test?
- Reason077 10y ago
  In the UK, there is no emissions test for particulate or NOx emissions, other than the subjective "does it emit visible smoke?". A visual inspection for the presence of the DPF is required, but this is easily defeated by installing a look-alike "null" filter. The people doing the MOT testing can be pretty shady anyway. Since any mechanic can operate as a testing facility, it's often the same people who remove DPFs that will then pass them in the MOT inspection.
  - icebraining 10y ago
    Seems like fixing that system would be more sensible than outlawing diesel cars, no?
    - Reason077 10y ago
      I agree with you. A strict emissions test regime would be a good first step. But politicians have known about this for years and little has been done - apparently it's a too hard (or too expensive) problem to fix. The thing is, even brand-new "clean" diesels are still worse polluters, for toxic particulates and NOx, compared to petrol and petrol-electric hybrid vehicles. London already has a disincentive on diesels coming into effect by 2019, when pre-Euro 6 (i.e. older than September 2015) diesel vehicles will be subject to a £12.50/day charge to drive in London. There are calls to extend this to cover all diesel vehicles, eventually leading to a total ban: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/jul/18/ban-diesel-cars-in-london-thinktank-urges https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/jul/18/ban-dies... Licensing of new diesel taxis will also soon be prohibited in London, and all single-deck busses will be zero-emission by 2020 (and double-deck busses will, at minimum, be hybrids).