Green NCAP campaigns for lighter vehicles

The Green New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) shared that it is campaigning for lighter automobiles and pointed out that the size of a car directly affects a vehicle’s energy requirements.

According to the organization, the results of its latest Life Cycle Assessment tests reveal that the larger the vehicle, the more energy it requires, which means that it can do more harm to the environment.

For example, the hybrid-electric sport utility vehicles (SUV) that were tested, have high fuel consumption and due to increased emissions in the usage phase, have life cycle values similar to a large electric SUV and a conventional gasoline or diesel-powered counterpart.

To better illustrate how mass affects environmental performance, Green NCAP has performed additional numerical simulations based on real-world measurements. These studies show that all three powertrain types (battery-electric vehicles, non-rechargeable hybrid cars, and conventional internal combustion-powered automobiles) have the same relative rise in energy consumption when their mass increases.

“Electric vehicles and electrification in general offer huge potential in reducing greenhouse gases, but the ever-increasing trend of heavier vehicles diminish this prospect. To counteract this, Green NCAP calls on manufacturers to reduce the mass of their products and calls on consumers to make purchasing decisions that not only consider the powertrain of their new cars but also consider their weight,” said Green NCAP Technical Manager Aleksandar Damyanov.

Photo from Green NCAP

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