On the yahoo auto site you can compare cars gas mileage and emission. I was really surprised when I started fooling around and comparing cars. Just for giggles I compared a Scion Xb vs a Crown Victoria. You would think the XB would be way better but its not!!. Can anyone explain why?

Our emission level is Tier 2 bin / level 1

Heres the links below

http://autos.yahoo.com/green_center/

http://autos.yahoo.com/green_center-...tFc34AUAhqJNIF

 

That is really suprising....and kind of bumming me out.

The xB seemed to rate fairly well as far as greenhouse gas emissions are concerned.
But a rating of 2 out of 10 really does stink for the air pollution score, which seems to mean all pollutants other than greenhouse.

I originally wanted a Prius...but my die-hard conservative dad wasn't having it. I think he didn't want it sitting in his driveway, lest anyone think he's some crunchy granola tree-hugging bleeding heart liberal (as he so lovingly refers to me.)

 

hippies lol

 

That's funny considering most conservatives are big into free choice and small government...

 

Ha, I know, I'm completely exaggerating. The real issue was price.
Plus, he kind of believes that the technology isn't fully developed and doesn't want to buy into it just yet...we kind of butt heads on that as well.

 

I thought there would be more discussion- little disappointed

 

Wow! I would have never guessed this. I even checked on the EPA's website and it shows the exact same thing.

So, the question is... Why? What is it about the design of the xB that causes it have such a poor Air Pollution Score?

Is this something that can be fixed w/ a mod?

 

Well my everday car is a crown vic, and that 20mpg is bull. If they want to round it, it's closer to 30, because I get about 25-28 mpg in mostly highway driving. And the box is closer to 35 mpg than 31. I'm not seeing how the xB pollutes more. It just doesn't seem possible. Maybe it pollutes more for it's size?

 

I found some more info on this site http://www.epa.gov/greenvehicles/E-T...ScionXB-06.htm

Air Pollution

The Air Pollution Score reflects pollutants that cause health problems and smog. The score is from 0 to 10, where 10 is best. The air pollutants coming out of a vehicle's tailpipe are tightly controlled by EPA's emissions regulations. Thanks to efforts from both EPA (on the regulation side) and the automotive industry (on the compliance side), today's vehicles are significantly cleaner than in the past. Technology advances such as catalytic converters, exhaust gas recirculation and electronic fuel controls have made tighter pollution control from vehicles possible. However, emission levels will still vary between vehicles due to differences in emissions standards. Emissions performance should be an important environmental consideration when buying a vehicle.

Air Pollution Score

The scion Xb man scored a 2 out of 10 - thats BAD


Greenhouse Gas

The Greenhouse Gas Score reflects the exhaust emissions of carbon dioxide. The score is from 0 to 10, where 10 is best. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas that is released into the atmosphere when solid waste, fossil fuels (oil, natural gas, and coal), and wood and wood products are burned. It's well accepted by scientists that greenhouse gases trap heat in the Earth's atmosphere and tend to warm the planet. The Greenhouse Gas Score is determined from the vehicle's estimated fuel economy and its fuel type. The lower the fuel economy, the more carbon dioxide is emitted as a by-product of combustion. The amount of carbon dioxide emitted per gallon burned varies by fuel type, since each type of fuel contains a different amount of carbon per gallon. A higher score means a vehicle is designed to emit less carbon dioxide. This chart shows the expected amounts of carbon dioxide emissions at each score for each fuel type.

The scion received an 8 out of 10 - thats pretty good


I thought it would be better-
I still love my car but it would be nice if it was more eco friendly.

 

At least it's better than the Corolla... 1 and 7 geesh.

Or the Imprezza... 1 and 4.

 

I'm pretty sure the Crown Vic has four gigantic Catalytic Converters on the dual exhaust and with an air pump/EGR blah blah blah.
The XB just has a small Cat. and great engine design.
If you were to measure GPM(Grams per Mile) of pollution. The Crown Vic would lose.

 

Typically 1 cat on the CV as most are single exhaust stock, but yes they are stocked with emissions crap. And yes, I agree with the GPM statement. It has to produce more pollution.

All that said, at the end of the day, screw the EPA and emissions. Just my opinion.

 

The HONDA FIT got a 6 and 8.

 

2006 FORD: Expedition received a 3 and a 1


2006 LAMBORGHINI: Murcielago received a 2 and a 0

 

Does the scoring also account for the manufacturing process (I know some do). That would definatly effect the rating. Being that the xB's are produced in Japan, which (to my understanding) is far less stringent than the US in it's emissions policies, it would make sense that the score would be much worse.

 

I just thought it would have done better like the HONDA FIT

 

I'm not surprised the Fit scores better - I've seen Honda ads where they make a big deal about how clean their cars are. It is a bummer that the xB (and presumably anything with the same drivetrain) doesn't score better, but c'est la vie, eh?

I really do need to read up on how that score's calculated, though. It seems intuitively obvious that a fuel-efficient vehicle should score low on air pollution. Less fuel burned/distance traveled should = lower pollution. So why doesn't it?