ANyway for a while, i considered the LEV rating of the fit the only thign I don't like about it. I wished it was ULEV. ANyway after learning that epa mileage ratings is rated differently per class, i wondered if emisisons ratings are as well. So i skimmed fueleconomy.gov and found stuff that is interesting
http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/bymod...emodelNF.shtml

Honda Fit emits 5.3 tons/year and has a 6 rating on air pollution
The Civic 5.5 even w a cleaner engine (6 or 7)
The Ford focus, with a hybrid quality "pzev" score, emits 6 or 7 tons
The VW rabbit emits 7.4 with a pzev score as well.
Scion XA emits 5.4, like the fit.
Yaris of course would be less at 5.1 or 5.0

Anyway this made me feel good. Because of the LEV rting of the fit, i always thought it woudl pollute more than a civic, focus, or a rabbit, who all get a better epa emissions score.

 

I think the pzlev, lev etc ratings have a lot to do with evaporative emissions, in addition to fuel economy; my wife's Prius gets a 9.5 out of 10 (based in part on 3.4 tons/yr) but also on its ingeneous "thermos bottle" for engine coolant that is used to warm up the cylinder head upon first start so it won't emit much cold-start unburned gasoline like all other engines do.

 

+1 on the pzlev rating being more about evaporative emissions.

The NYT had a good article on it recently:

"PZEV's hide in plain sight as specially equipped versions of cars as familiar as the Chevrolet Cobalt, the Ford Fusion, the Honda Accord and the Volvo V70, usually with four- or six-cylinder engines. They use an improved pollution-control system to meet California's toughest tailpipe standard for cars with combustion engines. The system carries a factory emissions warranty stretched to 15 years or 150,000 miles, from 10 years and 120,000 miles.

"Because a PZEV complies with tailpipe standards for a SULEV, or super ultra low emission vehicle, the exhaust can be as clean as that of many hybrids -- yet the cars do not incur the hybrid's price premium of several thousand dollars. PZEV's generally cost consumers no more than identical models that do not have the squeaky-clean certification, which are built for states that have not adopted California's rules, though they are estimated to cost automakers between $200 and $500 extra to produce. That money buys special parts like a steel gas tank, a catalytic converter with more precious metals inside, a larger trap for evaporative fumes and in some cases, an air injection system."
...
"An important part of the PZEV's advantage is its elimination of evaporative emissions, the gasoline fumes that escape during refueling or, especially on hot days, from the fuel tank and supply lines. Even a car that is not running can emit a significant amount of evaporative pollution -- perhaps 25 percent of the vehicle's total emissions, the air resources board says -- so the special fuel system makes a real difference in air quality."

If your state does any compliance with the California standard, then you may have easier access to PZEV vehicles.

 

Thanks for the link! I looked at the list--did you find any car (beside the Yaris) with lower than 5.3 that wasn't an NGV or hybrid?

Great news indeed!

 

I'm interested in a 2003 Toyota Matrix. Even though the Matrix is rated as ULEV, the EPA Air Pollution Score is much lower than the Fit (3 vs. 6, where 10 is best). The Fit also does better in Greenhouse Gas Emissions (5.3 tonnes vs. 5.7 tonnes).

 

How about soundly beating the Escape Hybrid/ VUE Hybrid in MPG and emissions!
I averaged out the MPG ratings for all 15 Hybrid vehicles listed on Edmunds.com and came up with 30.57MPG city and 31.71MPG highway. Granted that includes the silly full size pickup hybrids but at least we can claim that we get 'better MPG than the average hybrid'!

This car has much smaller emissions than every other car we considered.