Environmental list: Future also with hydrogen?
THERE'S SOMETHING HAPPENING The VCS Auto Environmental List evaluates new vehicle models for their environmental impact and shows which models cause the least damage to the environment. The winners of the 2021 edition are electric or gas models. In the electric vehicle category, the Hyundai Ioniq sedan and the BMW i3 city car share first place. Their indirect CO2 emissions [...]
In the electric vehicle category, the Hyundai Ioniq sedan and the BMW i3 city car share first place. Their indirect CO2 emissions when driving are very low - between ten and twelve grams per kilometer - and their battery is sized in such a way that it does not cause disproportionately high environmental damage during production.
Among the new electric models that have recently appeared on the market, there are mainly large cars with high fuel consumption, which, with the exception of the Mazda MX-30 SUV and the Renault Twingo Electric small car, do not make it into the top 10.
Wide range of environmentally friendly models
Among vehicles with internal combustion engines, only gas models make it into the top 10. Their emissions are below or exactly at 100 grams of CO2 per kilometer.
First place goes to the Skoda Octavia G-Tec station wagon, which has been able to greatly reduce its noise emissions. The VW Polo TGI small car and the Seat Arona TGI SUV are in second place, close on its heels.
The climate and environmental damage caused by electric and gas models can be greatly reduced if they are powered by biogas or green electricity.
Toyota has developed a new generation of its Mirai hydrogen model. The vehicle price has been greatly reduced and is equivalent to that of an electric model in the same category. At the same time, the number of hydrogen filling stations in Switzerland is increasing.
Deviations from officially declared values
The Auto-Umweltliste does not rank the best plug-in hybrids because the real CO2 emissions differ too much from the officially declared values.
Studies by Transport & Environment, the ICCT and the Fraunhofer Institute show that plug-in hybrids emit up to eight times more CO2 on the road than officially declared.
Reviews of more than 500 Swiss models
The Auto-Umweltliste evaluates more than 500 passenger car models with different drive systems. The assessment takes into account CO2 and noise emissions and, in the case of vehicles with internal combustion engines, air pollutants as well.
The environmental damage caused by battery production is also included in the evaluation of electric models.
autoenvironmentlist.ch.
