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New Limits Set on Car Fuel Consumption

Chinese auto designers were challenged to assist the country's energy-austerity drive by designing cars that comply with the nation's first passenger-car fuel-use standards.

Li Zhonghai, director of the Standardization Administration of China, on November 2 said the compulsory "Limits of Fuel Consumption for Passenger Cars," to be enacted by July 1, aims to cut fuel consumption per 100 kilometres (km) by up to 10 percent by 2008 in the first stage.

The second stage, which begins in 2008, requires carmakers to cut fuel consumption by another 10 percent from first-phase levels, he said.

The national statute, in line with a string of actions taken since September to place ceilings on industrial water and electricity use, demonstrate that the country is serious about conserving its resources through technical means, experts said.

Speaking at a seminar on passenger-car fuel efficiency, Li said gasoline-burning cars are seriously fouling the air in urban areas and are consuming a third of China's crude oil imports.

Xu Bamin, a senior engineer with the China Automobile Technology and Research Centre, said the fuel consumption of Chinese cars made before 2001 is 20 percent to 30 percent higher than that of foreign cars.

With environmental problems and fuel waste in mind, China has been working to create fuel-consumption standards since 2001, according to Xu.

Based on sophisticated measurement methods, the national standards set fuel-consumption limits for new cars weighing less than 3.5 tons, with an assumed travelling speed of not less than 50 kilometres per hour.

A light-duty vehicle with a kerb mass (the weight of a vehicle without passengers or baggage) between 1.2 tons and 1.3 tons should be designed to use an average of no more than 9.5 litres of fuel per 100 km before 2008.

Chinese passenger cars developed by then are expected to achieve 2002 world-average fuel-consumption rates, Xu said.

After 2008, the limit will be set at 8.6 litres per 100 km.

The current limits apply to new-model passenger cars only - vehicles with a maximum of nine seats -- designed in China, Xu said.

Only after expert authorities certify that new designs comply with national fuel standards can manufacturers begin mass production of a given model. Production can continue as long as the vehicles meet required standards.

A one-year "grace" period has been set to allow carmakers time to adjust old and new designs and production to the new standards.

Li Ying, an executive with Shanghai Volkswagen Automotive Company Limited, said the carmaker will adjust to the new standards while designing and developing new passenger cars.

Shanghai Volkswagen's post-1999 models, including the Passat, Polo and Touran, can already meet the second phase (post-2008) fuel-consumption standard, Li said.

China will apply fuel-efficiency standards to other types of vehicles in the future to ensure the wise use of fuels and to control escalating energy consumption, Li Zhonghai said.