Motorcycles pollute more than cars

[chapo]

From the Los Angeles Times today:
'd like to begin this column with an apology. I'm sorry for ruining your day.

This story is about emissions. More specifically, it's about the surprising level of emissions spewing from on-road motorcycles and scooters. In California, such bikes make up 3.6% of registered vehicles and 1% of vehicle miles traveled, yet they account for 10% of passenger vehicles' smog-forming emissions in the state. In fact, the average motorbike is about 10 times more polluting per mile than a passenger car, light truck or SUV, according to a California Air Resources Board comparison of emissions-compliant vehicles.


SUSAN CARPENTER / THROTTLE JOCKEY
For those of you who are wondering why I'm being such a killjoy, my reason is this: I've been hearing from an increasing number of readers who want to know if two-wheelers, which consume far less fuel, are also smog busters. Because scientific questions tend to come with complicated answers, I thought I'd do my best to explain what pollutants a gas-powered motorbike emits and why.

Motorcycles and scooters are, on average, about twice as fuel efficient as cars. Compact and lightweight, their internal-combustion engines do a better job of converting fuel into energy that makes the vehicle move. But extracting more energy from the fuel has a downside. It produces greater amounts of a smog-forming emission called oxides of nitrogen.

Oxides of nitrogen are one of three pollutants the Environmental Protection Agency and the Air Resources Board measure to see whether vehicles meet acceptable emissions levels and can be sold legally. Smog-forming hydrocarbons -- unburned compounds in fuel that escape through the tailpipe, fuel lines and gas tank -- are also measured, as is carbon monoxide. Carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, isn't measured by either agency, but motorcycles are generally better than other vehicles in this regard since they use less fuel per mile.

As with other passenger vehicles, there are technologies to offset motorcycle emissions, such as catalytic converters, but those technologies tend to be too big, too heavy or too hot to fit on a motorcycle and work as effectively as similar systems on larger, enclosed vehicles that have more space to accommodate them. That's why the EPA and the air board are more lenient on bikes than they are on other passenger vehicles.

"The emissions picture [for motorcycles] is fairly grim," said John Swanton of the Air Resources Board, "but we think it's fair for where motorcycles are today."

Emissions standards for motorcycles are already more forgiving than they are for cars, light trucks and SUVs. Not only are motorcycles allowed to emit more than cars, they are also tested at lower speeds, which pollutes less. And motorcycle manufacturers only have to ensure that their vehicles of 179 cc and above meet governmental emissions criteria for the first 18,600 miles of a bike's life, compared with 150,000 miles for cars.

Five years ago, the EPA tightened its emissions standards for on-road motorcycles with a two-tier system, the first of which tightened requirements for the 2006 model year. The second, even stricter phase kicks in for 2010.

California is the only state in the country with its own emissions standards, which are the same as the EPA standards except they've been fast-tracked to kick in two years earlier. In effect, the stricter standard has already been met for many of the on-highway motorcycles on the market because any 2008 model year bike that is sold in California already meets the EPA standard for 2010.

Right now, there are no plans for the air board or the EPA to further tighten motorcycle emissions requirements because:

* Motorcycles account for such a small portion of vehicle miles traveled.

* There haven't been enough advances in motorcycle emissions technologies to enable further pollution reduction to any significant degree.

* There are other, even bigger polluters to deal with, such as diesel trucks, construction equipment and non-emissions-compliant products from China.

Noncompliant Chinese vehicles have become such a pollution issue in California, in fact, that the Air Resources Board has just added a new motorcycle emissions facility at its Haagen-Smit Lab in El Monte to test them. The board estimates as many as 20,000 all-terrain vehicles, dirt bikes and scooters are shipped into California from China each month, many of them with emissions that are at least 10 times higher than the state's requirements.

Long story short: Motorcycles, even small ones, are more polluting than Hummers, but it's the best that can be done for now. If you want to make a difference, consider an electric two-wheeler for your next bike or a gas-powered model with fuel injection and a 3-way catalytic converter.

[varmint]

i already posted this over on the bike side of the forum.




just like to say "thanks, b****". she broke the code of silence. now we're on the eco nazi's radar.

[john70t]

I don't know why she only pointed out NOX, which is only formed at 2500 degrees (3500?I can't remember), or more. Usually those conditions are during high load, leaner mixture, and hot weather.
I think even the electric motors in hybrids release NOX when the brushes arc (gasp,did I just burn my liberal card?).

Motorcycles/mopeds could easily be cleaned up with 2-way cats, but there is also the CO2/mile numbers which should be taken into consideration, as well as the total pollution in drilling/refining/transporting twice as much gasoline to the consumer.
If the consumer trend is towards a better thing, why piss in the punchbowl?

The EPA could also take a close look at older jets spewing out fuel directly into the stratosphere, but then the unwashed masses would no longer be able to travel by plane.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Three words: diesel school buses.

Specifically very old diesel school buses. No lie - most of the ones on our roads today are 1970s vintage. Even with the so-called "low-sulfur/clean diesel" blends, these things absolutely belch black soot like something out of a WW2 movie. I imagine there's a heck of a lot more total emissions from those and heavy trucking than motorcycles.

I actually wouldn't mind too terribly having to run a catylitic on the bike, but for now I just try to keep it tuned as best I can and when riding, keep it rolling and up to temp (minimize idling).

[911boost]

My BMW had a catalytic converter on it, as do all of the new ones.

[Tobra]

This will go someplace when they can make money off it, smog tests for motorcycles, extra $50 tax on bikes.

Using the exact same logic they use for exempting motorcycles, they made the laws for older cars more draconian.

[nostatic]

My Aprilia has a cat as well. afaik all modern bikes do.

One has to look at the big picture as well. Much lower footprint, takes up less space, less damage to the roadways, etc.

[legion]

Originally Posted by nostatic

My Aprilia has a cat as well. afaik all modern bikes do.

One has to look at the big picture as well. Much lower footprint, takes up less space, less damage to the roadways, etc.

Worse gas mileage....

Imagine how much oil would be saved every year if cars didn't have catalytic converters. They are really unnecessary with fuel injection systems anyways.

[widebody911]

Originally Posted by legion

Imagine how much oil would be saved every year if cars didn't have catalytic converters. They are really unnecessary with fuel injection systems anyways.

I wonder. My 911 has a 3.6 and smogs fine without a cat. It would be interesting to do back-to-back comparisons of a car with and w/o cats.

[Tobra]

I don't, I compared a 49 state 1979 super beetle to a California car(with cat). Very close to the same numbers on the sniffer, can't remember if they had different standards

[Tim Hancock]

I could care less what emissions my motorcycles or cars spit out..... I guess that makes me a b@stard or some such in the eyes of folks who fuss over being green. I think I can live with that. Not trying to upset anyone here....I am just saying....

[m21sniper]

Originally Posted by chapo

Noncompliant Chinese vehicles have become such a pollution issue in California, in fact, that the Air Resources Board has just added a new motorcycle emissions facility at its Haagen-Smit Lab in El Monte to test them. The board estimates as many as 20,000 all-terrain vehicles, dirt bikes and scooters are shipped into California from China each month, many of them with emissions that are at least 10 times higher than the state's requirements.

Only 10x higher huh? LOL.

I didn't even know you could be a chinese motorbike in the US. What company?

[nostatic]

http://www.hyosungmotorsusa.com/