Are there any steps you could take or already take to minimise CO2 emissions from your vehicle(s)?

Answer 1

Hmm there seem to be more "smart a.rse" answers just for the sake of being anti rather than ones by people with an intelligent thought in their head and the ability to do some lateral thinking.

For your car to be producing less CO2 it has to be running more efficiently, that means burning less petrol, which means more mpg which therefore means more money left in your pocket and not in the petrol station till. Duh!

The cumilative effect can be quite significant.

As the saying goes "Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little"

Answer 2

None! I use my vehicles as and when i please. No amount of government bull will make me stop driving or riding. If the 'green' tax went into running a huge air-purification machine, then i might not mind so much, but it doesn't, it goes into the chancellors funds to pay for all the crap we didn't ask for or want. Who elected these idiots anyway - oh yes, it was US!

To bust a few myths already entered on this post. Driving slowly does NOT reduce CO2 as your car is not working as efficiently as it does at 56mph hence better fuel comsumption figures at higher speeds - answer - build more roads to improve traffic flow!!!! When was the last time you saw smog on a motorway?

Buses and trains are fine if you live AND work on a regular bus route, 65% of the U.K. don't!!!!

Turning off your engine whilst in a queue lets it cool down, and then needs a slight increase in initial fuel input to start again - anyone remember chokes to start cold engines? Fuel injection systems still do the same thing automatically. It also puts a drain on your battery to restart the engine which has to be topped up by - you guessed it - extra load on the alternator on the engine!!!!

Statistically BTW there are more cattle in the world than cars! Answer, ban vegetarians and eat more cows!

Answer 3

Its quite a surprise to see you post this question chris?
I know and you know that the catalytic side of the exhaust takes care of emissions to the point where your modern vehicle needs a computor to do resets in this area .If of course you had this question 15 or so years ago,maybe more, the average know a bit sort of person would change the air fuel relationship qiite easily with a carb adjustment::Of course the air filter should be the first check, but its unfair to have people think they can alter Co without expensive equipment Try asking why so many engines on a different mode of use are left alone [eg leisure vehicles] Have you asked this question as to car sharing ,walking and so on,in which my reply would be,, I paid for this vehicle and i will use ,it I didnt buy it to look at As a motoring organisation,why dont you raise the questoin of speed,and why with the modern brakes being so good and shall we say the famous moggy being not as good, do we now get slower and slower On one side people will say about increase in accidents,and on mine the large increase in population. Any way thats a different debate

Answer 4

Any pollution caused by burning gunpowder to shoot andy j (above) (and his kind) would be well worth the sacrifice.

56 mph is approximately the speed where the airflow over the car turns from laminar to turbulent, this causes a step change increase in the air resistance so stay below it.

It is not true to say that 56 mph is the ideal speed, the faster you go the greater the resistance. Very small engines will be most efficient at a speed well below 56 mph.

Unnecessarily large engines should be unilaterally banned.

In too low a gear the engine revs excessively, in too high a gear you need to press down the accelerator pedal too much and the engine can't burn all the fuel.

The optimum compromise between these two depends on many factors and varies for each vehicle and its set of conditions, for example the difference between going up or down hill.

With a modern fuel injected engine it is easy to accurately compare the rate of fuel consumption with the speed of the vehicle and an efficiency gauge should be compulsory on all vehicles.

The best thing I can suggest that we do with our vehicles is use them to hunt down all the idiots that keep rambling on about cows and squash them under the wheels, now that would be efficient.

Answer 5

Well, keep the car in good shape. Not a problem for me as Renault Energy engines will keep running long since the gearbox has seized and the bodywork has rotted away and fallen off.

But since I'm broke for about half of every month, I'm naturally a very efficient driver! When that light on the fuel gauge comes on and the needle has practically bent over the bump stop, I can make that last gallon go a long, long way!!! ;-)

Answer 6

I don't think regular hard working people should have to worry about co2 emissions , that's the auto manufactures' problem to worry about , If there's a problem at all! It's hard enough just to keep your car legal & have enough gas in the tank to get where you have to go.And anyway, the good lord didn't plan on the the planet Earth to last an eternity! It's only a scam to sell people more of what they don't need!

Answer 7

There are at least two pernicious factors at interplay with regards to mass extinction: the first is human over-fishing in the worlds oceans where many species have been reduced with up to 90% in a few decades. The second is the increased acidity in the world's oceans that originates from the rising CO2 levels in the atmosphere. Unfortunately the acidification is happening way too fast for species to be able to adapt to the changes.

Answer 8

Make sure the car is well maintained. Change air filters regularly, keep your tyres properly inflated, avoid prolonged idling, drive in an appropriate gear and don't over rev the engine, you should typically be looking to change up a gear around 2400 revs, don't speed on the motorway, drive smoothly and avoid harsh acceleration, don't carry any unnecesary load around too, it's all work for the engine.

Consider having the fuel injectors cleaned to maintain an efficient spray pattern, this not only has the potential to improve efficiency but power and acceleration too.

Answer 9

Leave the car at home if you are only going a short distance and walk would be the simplest form of saving co2 emissions.

Answer 10

Bring in fuel rationing for the private motorist. Then maybe I will only use the car for journeys that are absolutely necessary.

Most of my street use their cars to go to work. I see them leaving during the am rush hour and returning in the evening rush hour.

At the end of the street is a bus route with numerous buses passing by half empty and at frequent intervals.

ps.

i don't subscribe to the climate change theory put forward by the Green lobby and their group of supporting scientists.

It would just be nice to get back to when motoring was an enjoyable pursuit.