A new report, published today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, shows that emissions of new cars has fallen by 20% since 2000. Whereas in 2000, only 1% of new cars produced less than 130 g/km of CO2, 40% of new cars are now in that low-emission bracket.

The SMMT report also records that, in 2010 alone, the CO2 emissions of new cars fell by 3.5%, meaning that the average new car now produced 144.2g/km CO2.



The number of vehicles exempt from UK car tax (VED) has increased and now there are nearly 40,000 vehicles in the zero tax bracket because their emissions were under 100g/km.

Over the ten-year period the greatest improvement came in the executive and small car segments with emissions falling 28% and 26% respectively.The biggest reductions over the past year came in luxury saloons and MPVs, with emissions down 6% in each sector, compared with 2009 figures.

The lowest emitting tax bands have also been the winners in the showrooms. Cars producing 130 g/km or less now represent around 38% of the new car market in the UK, compared to less than 1% in 2000. This represents good progress towards the target where all manufacturers must reach a Europe-wide average of 130 g/km for their vehicles by 2015.

• The full SMMT New Car CO2 Report 2011 is free to download from www.smmt.co.uk

Tags: environment