The real facts on 'dirty' diesels

This depends on how future government and local policy is implemented. Outside London, the Government hasn’t yet put anything concrete in place to penalise drivers for owning diesel vehicles, nor has it implemented any schemes to incentivise drivers to trade them in either.

In London, however, the Mayor will be introducing a T-Charge and an Ultra-Low Emission Zone to reduce air pollution.

But as part of the Government’s air quality plan, which includes banning the sale of new diesel and petrol vehicles by 2040, it is possible charging Clean Air Zones, similar to ones in London, could be rolled out in other cities which have been identified as having some of the worst air pollution in the country.The implementation of these may be a few years away, but at present only diesel vehicles that meet the Euro 6 emission standard will be safe from charges. The Government hasn’t put in place any schemes to incentivise drivers to trade in their old diesels.

Vehicle manufacturers, however, have announced several schemes to urge drivers to trade in older vehicles for new ones.

Some manufacturers are creating their own diesel scrappage schemes that offer thousands of pounds towards a new car if you trade in an older diesel one. While money off a new car is helpful, it won’t be enough of a discount to encourage everyone into a new car. For many drivers, a new car simply isn’t an option because of
the costs involved.

For buyers of used cars, the best advice to reduce your environmental impact is to choose the newest car you can afford as these are more likely to meet modern Euro emissions standards.

However, how towns and cities that bring in clean air zones will treat vehicles is still to be confirmed.

You can also think about where and when you drive. High levels of pollution are predominantly (but not exclusively) a problem in city centres, so changing your
route to avoid entering future ultra-low emission and Clean Air Zones may well make a difference.

For those drivers who use their vehicle for long journeys, diesel remains the default choice, for its better fuel economy. A modern Euro 6 standard diesel should be almost comparable to that of a petrol car in terms of NOx emissions – while diesels still
emit, on average, up to 25 percent less CO2 than petrols cars, however, real world driving emissions may still vary.

In the short term at least, drivers of Euro 6 diesel cars should be exempt from any charges or restrictions as a result of clean air zones.

The Government has, however, promised to look at the appropriate ‘tax treatment’ of diesels in November’s Budget, so there remains a question mark over how newer diesels might be impacted by this.

Newer diesels tend to emit lower levels of CO2, however there are question marks over whether these newer vehicles in real-world conditions emit as little NOx and particulates as the laboratory tests suggest.

New real-world testing standards were introduced in September 2017, which should give buyers more information on how much their new diesel may emit. Drivers
might also like to look at the EQUA Index as another source of information on emissions.

Generally speaking, older diesels, doing high mileage in urban areas tend to be the biggest cause of pollution.

This can vary by make and model so it is always good to do your research.

As a general rule of thumb, diesel cars which were introduced from 1 September 2014 on
new-to-market cars, and the majority of new cars sold from 1 September 2015, are Euro 6 compliant – although there are some exceptions and without a
comprehensive online look-up system yet available, you are best checking directly with a manufacturer to be sure of a vehicle’s Euro emissions class.

In the long term yes, because the Government has announced that new diesels will no longer be sold from 2040. But this also applies to petrol vehicles.
In the more immediate term it is hard to be conclusive – at least until the Government is clear about how it will treat diesel vehicles, and until local authorities’ plans for clean air zones are approved.“We are on a journey to a new zero emissions future and the latest high-tech diesels in our cars are just an important step on that journey.”

Choose a modern diesel car if you mainly drive on motorways and rarely drive short distances.

Generally speaking if much of your driving is in urban and typically more congested areas, it may be better to opt for a vehicle other than a diesel. At present there are no plans to charge Euro 6 diesel vehicles to drive into city centres, however, this may change in future years.

Choose a modern petrol car if you live in the city and mainly use your car for short trips, particularly if you do occasional longer trips by motorway, and most of your driving is in slow-moving, heavy traffic.

Also pick petrol if you love driving – today’s modern turbo petrol engines are huge fun and reasonably efficient with it!

There are now other options open to motorists. These include conventional hybrids and plug-in hybrids.

Pure electric vehicles are also becoming increasingly popular, which are ideally suited to driving around city centres where there is plenty of charging infrastructure to keep you moving.

Plug-in hybrids and conventional hybrids are good for people doing a mix of city centre driving and longer journeys.