The European Union may force manufacturers to upgrade engine calibration software after Euro V trucks failed to meet emissions standards in urban environments.
The Netherlands’ delegation has told the EU’s Environment Council that research programmes in the Netherlands and Sweden found NOx emissions from Euro V trucks were above regulated levels, potentially preventing it from meeting its environmental obligations for ambient air quality.
The Dutch government claimed the there are “strong indications” that inadequate engine calibration software was to blame, suggesting an agreement could be made with the industry to upgrade the software:
“The automotive industry acknowledges that Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) systems are barely effective in urban driving conditions, but does not consider this a problem because the vehicles and engines concerned comply with the official type approval,” it said, in a note to the council.
For full analysis of the likely response from the EU and OEMs views see the next April 2010 edition of Integer’s AdBlue Monitor.
