New fuel efficiency norms introduced

India on Friday announced a new regime to inform consumers about fuel efficiency of passenger cars with an aim to push automakers to produce more fuel-efficient and better designed cars in next 10 years. HT reports.

India on Friday announced a new regime to inform consumers about fuel efficiency of passenger cars with an aim to push automakers to produce more fuel-efficient and better designed cars in next 10 years.

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The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) released a consultation paper, declaring its twin intention to first introduce fuel efficiency labels, like the ones for air-conditioners and refrigerators, for passenger cars and then fuel economy standards for carmakers to reduce per vehicle emissions.

A 1,000-kg car, for instance Maruti Swift, with five -star label may run for 18 kms on a litre of petrol. A similar car having the same weight and with a single star will not take you more than 13.5 kms on a litre of petrol. As of now, only 9.7 % of cars fall in five-star fuel efficiency category and about 22 % in one-star category of the BEE, which will come into force in two to three months.

The second part of the regime, to be introduced from 2015, is based on Corporate Average Fuel Consumption (CAFE), which means average efficiency of the entire fleet of an auto company.