Is your choice of car 'best on CO2'?

The 'Best on CO2' scheme, developed by the Department for Transport (DfT) in association with What Car? magazine, will help consumers find the lowest carbon dioxide (CO2) emitting models of the type of car they want.

Transport minister Jim Fitzpatrick said: "By choosing the car with the most fuel efficient engine in its class, drivers could reduce their engine CO2 emissions by 24% and potentially save a quarter on fuel costs."

What Car? editor Steve Fowler added: "These car rankings are exactly what consumers need to make an informed choice about the type of car to buy in order to minimise their fuel consumption, save money and help tackle climate change.

"Car buyers are making increasingly difficult choices about the cars they buy and these rankings will help them to include environmental factors when making that vital decision.''

The 'Best on CO2' rankings were developed using emissions data from the Government's Vehicle Certification Agency, which is responsible for conducting the official tests to determine CO2 emissions from cars.

For the purposes of the rankings, vehicles have been put into 14 categories, starting with superminis and working up to performance cars.

A link to the 'Best on CO2' rankings website is provided above/right.

Customer awareness?

Earlier this month it emerged that almost half of consumers were unaware of a colour-coded labelling scheme introduced two years ago, which displays a vehicle's CO2 emission levels. Some car dealers were also still failing to displaying the labels.

Results from research conducted by the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership (LowCVP) showed that 44% of consumers were unaware of the voluntary scheme.

Of the 400 dealers surveyed, 86% displayed the labels compared with 74% last year. A total of 65% of cars in showrooms were clearly labelled compared with 55% in 2006. Only 28% of dealers made "extensive use" of the labels, although this was an improvement on the 2006 figure of 18%.

Graham Smith, president of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), said: "This improved performance is positive, but we're not where we should be yet.

"We will continue to encourage all dealers to include this key information in their showrooms and be crystal clear about explaining to our customers the benefits and relationship between lower carbon and lower-cost motoring."

It was also revealed today that European car companies look set to miss their emission-reduction targets for 2008.

Manufacturers have a voluntary agreement with the EU to reduce CO2 emissions by 25% to 140 grams per kilometre (g/km), but by 2006, none of the major car companies had achieved this. The International Council on Clean Transportation added that the average figure for 2008 was expected to be 155g/km - still well above the 140g/km target.