Vauxhall Astra

(1987) ) Fo MkII 7 m rd F f 1.6D 0 k iesta Gol 0 / 1.0 VW 2 g Mk ( m I (1 2 97 N /k 6) p V 4 .0 N bH h g Ox 70 O a V 0 N ut C u 7 m tp x A ou C 2 k er O x R . / 1. ow 72 P M O /km h 0 HCg g/ x 0 g a km M 07 a p 0. t 2 2 l M + o 0 p teg s l y ula A 2 2. tic g H 8 51 apr u o CO 3 P km s . g/k g r g/ T m e C 64 t 2 b 0.5 x c a r 3 t n a 18 o r M .31 m x a x pg 1 g/ NO ( km b u 2 O r .3 ) i 470 0 n b 1 0 N e a . 36. 9 N 1 K 2 9 d n 7 O er g 0 9 b w 1 Mp / ) ei ( . A m 6 C gh 12 g/k 2 t 43 .0 3 51 8 2 g O 200 0 7 CO kg 5 8 6 / E . k C 2 s 4 7 g g 0 e M CO2 1 g m y 8 . / p 9 IN 6 k / 1 14 I . k 9. o C 7 m m M es 7 g/k n oo d m pe e ts oN r ( c n nO 20 er es i x 07 n ra s ) M s o st ye ag z e s b e r er r l d n H o i p a o C n 0. A m e si 01 u h n o 2 r e e n g/k C iv -t m ct re C A p O 0. t l 2 04 el o 4 g B tr /km S n B o M st A c pig 1 d ss 29 ki a g/k S e m ak r 5 B 2.3 Summary Introduction Cars have come a long way in the last 30 years.Air There is an old adage in the car industry that goes But as this report shows, these rules have consequences something like this.Thirty years ago the first thing a quality pollutants have been cut by more than 98 per in other areas. More pollution abatement technology designer reached for was his pencil and paper. Today, it's a and safety systems have played a large part in creating cent. Fuel economy has improved and CO2 emissions book of rules and regulations the size of War and Peace. larger, heavier (and less aerodynamic) cars. reduced, despite increases in vehicle weight.As for Tongue in cheek this may be, but it hides a truth about For car makers it is proving increasingly difficult to safety, new cars are crammed with kit to prevent the increasing pressures on car makers as they develop balance these objectives - the need to reduce emissions, accidents, not just limit their effects on occupants and new models and evolve current variants. improve safety, give customers the comfort features they demand, keep prices down and all within the constraints pedestrians. On the one hand, the industry is the largest investor in of a competitive auto sector. R&D in Europe (€20 bn or four per cent of turnover) The Evolution of the Car, shows these aren't just idle creating safer, cleaner cars that appeal to customers and For example, experts have engineered more than 98 per meet market demand at the right price. cent of air quality pollutants like NOx (oxides of claims.They are facts supported by comparisons of nitrogen), CO (carbon monoxide) and HC real models as they have evolved across the On the other, there is the rise of regulation. According (hydrocarbons) from tailpipe emissions in the last 30 to SMMT, in 1996 there were 62 bundles of rules which years. Is it reasonable for regulators to impose ever generations. define the template for a new car coming to market. In tighter limits in a spiral of diminishing returns, at ever 2007 the number of these so-called 'type approval' greater cost to manufacturers? regulations had risen 37 per cent to 85 in total. And, of course, evolution is dynamic.The motor Can the European industry absorb the cost of meeting industry, Europe's largest investor in R&D, is It is true that rules like limits for exhaust pollutants in proposed CO2 reduction targets, that some committed to developing technologies that will go Euro engine standards have helped focus investment in independent sources suggest could add an average of engine and exhaust technology to reduce harmful €3650 to the price of a new car? Would consumers be even further on safety and sustainability.That's despite emissions. Equally, safety rules on occupant and willing to pay? the challenges that come from an over-complicated pedestrian protection have complemented investment in active safety systems like ABS and ESP,helping halve road This report does not suggest that we are at the end of regulatory framework and the ever-present threat of fatalities in the UK since the early eighties, and cut the line, or that the industry is unwilling to make further heavy-handed policy making. pedestrian deaths by a factor of three. progress. Far from it. Investment will continue to bring 2 3 Methodology air quality, fuel economy and safety benefits to new cars Manufacturers were asked to select a pair of cars to Ford and Vauxhall offered to supply data for early Mk II of the future. However, it is important that we place a compare in the Evolution of the Car. SMMT suggested Astra and Mk I Fiesta variants, but emission figures stick in the sand and emphasise the following points: that models should have a degree of lineage over the were not available. However, the manufacturers kindly generations. For example, comparing a 1976 Ford agreed to have these models tested separately at • The industry has come a long way on safety, emissions Fiesta with a 2007 model of similar engine size and Millbrook Proving Ground in Bedfordshire. and fuel economy in the last 30 years, as the evolution type, brings comparative figures that span five of models in this report demonstrates. generations of the 'same' car. In the week beginning 27 August 2007, tests were undertaken in accordance with procedures set out in • We must not allow policy makers to lose sight of the Not all the model pairs offer exact like-for-like 2007 type approval rules.This allowed an accurate like- delicate balance between different aims in areas like comparisons. For example, the 2007 VW Golf in this for-like comparison between older models and the safety and emissions – and the consequences that report has a slightly larger engine (1.9-litre diesel) latest Ford and Vauxhall variants which would also have over-regulation in one area can bring in another compared to its Mk II equivalent (1.6-litre diesel). In been tested to this schedule. ar (weight v fuel consumption and CO2). name at least the Mercedes appears to be different, the C albeit the C 200 KOMPRESSOR is a direct descendent For other older models in the report, for example n of • The industry is not a soft target.The heavy hand of of the 190 E 2.0, to which it is compared here. those supplied by BMW and Toyota, official figures were tio regulation could drive more car makers towards the taken from type approval tests applied at the time of volu he E brink of extinction, rather than to a bright and more The Astra extends the principle of evolution slightly Euro I and II emission standards (see notes at end of T sustainable future. further - to the market place - where equivalent power this report for Euro timeline). output comes from a 2.0 litre petrol Astra GTE from 1990 and a current 1.9 turbo-diesel model. The data was subsequently collated by the SMMT communications team. Seven manufacturers responded with model pairs for S inclusion in the report.They were asked to complete standard specification sheets supplied by SMMT. These ort included sections relating to emissions – both air quality JUMPs rep pollutants and carbon dioxide – and to standard safety res equipment, active and passive. prog akers A car m from 4 5 Key findings Ford Fiesta 1.0 (1976) v Ford Fiesta 1.25 Sigma (2007) The evolution of the car over successive generations are designed to prevent an accident taking place, like The Ford Fiesta is one of the most popular and enduring small Key indicators: F has been characterised by greener, safer products. ABS (anti-lock brakes) and ESC (electronic stability cars on the market. It is one of only five cars that have topped control). the best-sellers list in the UK since 1965, hitting the top spot in The 2007 Fiesta emits less than two per cent of o On emissions, the data reveals air quality exhaust gases 1990 and 1991 and from 1996 to 1998. Last year it took the the NOx, HC and CO emissions of its 1976 are now a fraction of what they once were. For Almost all new cars sold in the UK (not just those in number three slot, selling more than 100,000 units. predecessor. In fact, SMMT has calculated that it r example the modern Fiesta emits less than two per this report) are now fitted with ABS as standard, a would take the following number of 1.25 petrol- cent of the air quality emissions of its 30 year-old voluntary move taken by the industry in 2004.

Load more