New emissions testing regime brought in

Tougher emissions tests for new models of diesel and petrol cars will be introduced on 1 September, as the fallout from the VW emissions scandal continues.

The Government claims the new standards are part of the 'biggest overhaul of emissions rules in a generation'. The test will be rolled out for all new cars on sale in Britain from 1 September 2019.

Under the old test, vehicles were tested in the lab on a rolling road but now they will have a 90-minute real-world driving test. The limits are being introduced under European-wide reforms.

VW engineers managed to trick the laboratory testing system using 'defeat devices' - software that sensed when the car was being tested and activated equipment that reduced emissions.

However, the testing system itself came under scrutiny following the scandal. Former European commissioner, Günter Verheugen, told MEPs it was clear for many years that emissions tests for road vehicles did not represent real driving conditions.

The Government’s diesel testing programme last year found that today’s Euro 6 diesel cars were emitting six times more nitrogen dioxide in the real-world than in the lab. Under the latest reforms, emissions will have to cut by two thirds.

Ministers have also announced that the nitrogen oxide emissions requirements for all new car models will be stricter again from 1 September 2020.

Transport minister Paul Maynard said: 'This will ensure all vehicles meet rigorous standards when driven on our roads – and we are going even further tightening requirements again in 2020.'

The new rules are designed to stop car manufacturers cheating on the emissions test. During the 90-minute test, vehicles will have emissions testing equipment attached to the exhaust pipe, and they must pass before they are approved for sale in Britain.

The vehicle will also have to do roughly equal sessions of testing in towns, the countryside and in motorway driving. 

A recently established Market Surveillance Unit, established by the Department for Transport (DfT), tests vehicles already on the road to make sure they meet emissions standards.