UK emission limits

[LeaUK]

Just thought I'd point out the apparent loop hole in UK emission limits - this especially applies to years '92 to '94.

It's a little of a cross post from the Tech Help forum, however my UK SL colleagues will I'm sure find it of interest.

Original thread:

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/tech-help/119884-o2-sensor-test-inverse-duty-cycle-post861333.html#post861333


According to VOSA (Vehicle and Operator Services Agency, our law enforcement body) it appears there's a 'get out' for cars first used between 1 August '92 and 31 July '94. I have no idea why (assume the EC directive didn't come into force until '94) but apparently these cars only need to pass:

CO: <=3.5%
HC: <=2500ppm

A precis:

For the reference of others in the UK there is one slight variation in UK emissions testing that I have recently found: most garages (if not all), for turnover reasons I suspect, perform a Basic Emissions Test (BET) first.

This allows the tester to measure emissions without the need to know the engine code or specific model data of the tested car - no need to follow any flow diagrams to find the exact test limits!

So in the UK this BET limit has changed to match the newer bread of car (September 2002) and is:

CO <=0.2%
HC <=200ppm
0.97-1.03 Lambda

If a car fails this test, it doesn't necessarily mean the car fails, it simply means the tester has to now follow the flow charts to locate the exact emission limits for that exact vehicle and retest to those limits.

Cars used before 1 Aug ‘75 – Visual check only
Between 1 Aug ‘75 and 31 July ‘86 – CO <=4.5%, HC <=1200ppm
Between 1 Aug ’86 and 31 July ’92 – CO <=3.5%, HC <=1200ppm
Between 1 Aug ’92 and 31 July ’94 – CO <=3.5%, HC <=1200ppm - strange but it's definitely in the flow diagrams (see below):

Between 1 Aug ’94 and 31 Aug ‘2002 - does exact match exist in the ‘In-service Emission book’?
Yes – Carry out CAT test using vehicle specific data
No – Carry out non-cat test - CO <=3.5%, HC <=1200ppm

On or after 1 Sept 2002 – does exact match exist in the ‘In-service Emission book’?
Yes – Carry out CAT test using vehicle specific data
No - Fast Idle CO<=0.2%, HC <=200ppm, Lambda0.97 to 0.103, Idle CO <=0.3%


So apologies to the MoT garage whom tested my vehicle in '92 - they were indeed testing to the correct limits. Now - this is great news.

For more info and flow diagrams of UK testing procedure see here:
http://www.vosa.gov.uk/vosa/specialnotice04-04inspectionmanualupdates.htm

For the 'In-service emissions data/vehicle specific data - see here:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_roads/documents/page/dft_roads_028499.hcsp

[LeaUK]

Just a quick update - my assumption that my car wasn't a passenger car (because it's not a Taxi) was wrong. So the emmisions for a '92 vehicle are as the manufacturer's original spec! In my case 0.3%

Just wanted to clarify.

Lea

[page62]

When are you Brits gonna shove the EU back into the sea? It seems that all the extra bureaucracy coming out of Brussels wouldn't sit well with y'all...

[LeaUK]

LOL, we're still resisting the currency so at least that's something! However I'm sure they'll beat us into submission over the next 5 years :-(