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Car makers will have to fit more environmentally friendly air conditioning systems to all new cars by 2011, the EU has said.

The motor industry had been lobbying for the new rules, which stem from the Mobile Air Conditioning (MAC) directive from 2006, to be held off until 2017 as car makers struggle with the global downturn, and while they concentrate on more eco-friendly drivetrains.

But the European commission has ruled that the coolant used in current systems has too high a glob...Read the full article

There is no viable alternative right now, but the EU wants the car industry to invent this in the next year?   I think the automotive industry are concentrating on just surviving for the next year alone and could do with a bit of slack.

Or should we just tell the EU that we'll all switch on our air conditioning and roll down our windows to combat "global warming"?

 

 the solution is simple, ban air-con. it is a completely unessesntial component to vehicle transport. electric windows need to go aswell, a fuel wasting use of energy.

Autocar:

EU calls for greener air-con

almost right

Autocar:

EU calls for greener con

If the EU kept it`s interfering trap shut for a month and thus didn`t produce any paper for that time, how much more environmentally friendly would that be? 

 

Symanski:

There is no viable alternative right now, but the EU wants the car industry to invent this in the next year?   I think the automotive industry are concentrating on just surviving for the next year alone and could do with a bit of slack.

Or should we just tell the EU that we'll all switch on our air conditioning and roll down our windows to combat "global warming"?

The European and US car industries have a long and disgraceful history of doing almost nothing in safety and environmental terms until they are forced to do so through to legislation, and then carrying it out in double quick time with no impact on prices. We could have a gentleman's wager, Symanski. Make a note in your diary and I'll bet you that manufacturers green up their aircon by 2011 and it'll happen with such little fuss that you won't even notice.

If an alternative refrigerant is less efficient, then the air con systems (most of which will be automatic climate control soon) will run more, putting more load on millions of engines - causing them to emit more CO2.

I wouldn't like to calculate the comparative green house damage of lost 'bad' refrigerant versus perhaps inefficient 'good' refrigerant. But with the EU's talents for screw ups whats the betting they are making things worse?

 i will give the EU a better idea, put a tax on cars fitted with air con, an annual tax aswell as a new car tax, to be paid ontop of the cost of the licence disk. say £100 per year extra, with a new car tax  of £500.

that should really help in reducing the numbers of cars on the road fitted with air con. those fitted with greener versions can get a tax discount but must still pay the extra air con tax.

 

 

beachland:

the solution is simple, ban air-con. it is a completely unessesntial component to vehicle transport

So that's okay for the UK, Ireland, the Netherlands & Belgium (most of the time) and Normandy then? The rest of us can go screw ourselves I presume? How charmingly insular. The next time I have to drive somewhere in 38° plus you can come and sit next to me. We'll see how long you last before you reach for the airco switch.

RobotBoogie:

We could have a gentleman's wager, Symanski.

The usual amount as they put it on Trading Places?

You're right, legislation has been used in the past.   But don't you feel that it's being over used?   That we're on one hand trying to save various car manufacturers yet on the other putting more and more obstacles in their path!

And as someone else has already pointed out, if the refridgerant is less efficient will we not do more damage to the environment?

Dave52:

So that's okay for the UK, Ireland, the Netherlands & Belgium (most of the time) and Normandy then? The rest of us can go screw ourselves I presume? How charmingly insular. The next time I have to drive somewhere in 38° plus you can come and sit next to me. We'll see how long you last before you reach for the airco switch.

 

 

 ok maybe perhaps if you are disabled or suffer from a registered illness there could be concessions, you havent said if you are or not, but healthy people dont need air-con in any earth temperature, much hotter countries in africa and india cope perfectly well without it, the new tata nano does not have air conditioning for the mass indian customers, but it is being optioned to the uk customers who dont realise that sweating is a normal bodily function that actually stops us from overheating. if you want extra comfort at the expence of the environment then you should be taxed to pay for the luxury.

 

Mr Beachman has obviously not lived anywhere else apart from UK or Northern Europe.