"A car's manufacture causes the same environmental impact as its lifetime use"

[swee'pea99]

...was suggested in a letter in the paper. Is it true?

I've often wondered about the relative environmental impact of keeping a car on the road v scrapping it in favour of a new 'green' one - hybrid or whatever - and have blithely assumed that keeping the old one running was, environmentally speaking, the better option. This quote would seem to suggest I've been right. Does anyone out there have a definitive answer? (Not that I'm in a position to lash out on a new Prius...I'm just curious.)

 

[Markymark]

I read, though it was many years ago, that 80% was production and 20% usage. I dare say production is now more efficient.

It was when the first Prius style cars where coming out and people were rushing to sell their car and buy a new 'environmentally friendly' one.

 

[swee'pea99]

@User482 knows shoot like this and why don't you post in SC&P?

I don't know. I kind of think of this as 'of general interest' rather than being political - if it belongs in SC&P (which I tend to avoid as it's so fierce) could a moderator please move it. Thanks.

 

[fossyant]

The environmental impact of certain "green cars" during production is hidden for very good reason.

On a personal level, the cost of a hybrid or electric car over say a similar petrol, I wouldn't save the difference in fuel over many years.

 

[John the Monkey]

The study (Weiss et al, 2010) reveals that fully 75 percent of a car's lifetime carbon emissions stem from the fuel it burns, not its production. A further 19 percent of that is production and transportation of the fuel, leaving just six percent for the car's manufacture.

These figures vary--a more recent Volkswagen study suggests that with vehicle efficiency rising steadily, 68 percent of the car's lifetime emissions came from driving it, while the manufacturing process accounts for a higher 22 percent.

http://www.greencarreports.com/news...car-is-greener-than-driving-an-old-one-really

 

[jefmcg]

Is it true?

I'm pretty sure that has been the consensus for a long time.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/green-living-blog/2010/sep/23/carbon-footprint-new-car

Scrapping an old car is better for the local environment, not the globe.

 

[mjr]

@User482 knows shoot like this and why don't you post in SC&P?

SC&P is dead. Maybe you mean Politics and Current Affairs?

Here's the claim in the Grauniad back in 2010: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/green-living-blog/2010/sep/23/carbon-footprint-new-car - so another aspect of the question is whether the answer is still the same.

https://www.smmt.co.uk/industry-topics/environment/ suggests reductions of various manufacturing things of 19 to 35% as well as usage reductions of 33% (and it looks like 1999 is 15 years ago so the page doesn't get updated that often!) so I suspect the answer hasn't changed. That seems mildly surprising to me because I thought industry in general had cleaned up faster than transport usage - but car-making is seen as a prestigious thing and manufacturers get all sorts of sweetheart deals from governments, as we've seen from the pathetic punishments for test-fiddling, so it's plausible they're not cleaning up quickly.

 

[Shut Up Legs]

Has anyone seen similar studies for bicycles? I'd be interested to see what the impact of making vs using a bicycle is.

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

Has anyone seen similar studies for bicycles? I'd be interested to see what the impact of making vs using a bicycle is.

What about walking and shoes?

 

[classic33]

Has anyone seen similar studies for bicycles? I'd be interested to see what the impact of making vs using a bicycle is.

About 530 pounds.

 

[classic33]

What about walking and shoes?

Wear clogs!

 

[Profpointy]

What about walking and shoes?

I realise you are probably teasing, but in my experience a decent pair of shoes costing (say) £200 new will cost more than that in repairs over its life

 

[raleighnut]

It's the same with a lot of things, we had a new boiler installed to replace the old back boiler. It is more efficient and saves us around £150 a year in gas bills, trouble is it cost over 2 1/2 grand to install so it'll take over 15yrs to pay for itself (and it probably won't last that long)

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

Wear clogs!

Brilliant. Wooden bikes next!

 

[classic33]

What about walking and shoes?

https://blogs.crikey.com.au/theurbanist/2015/03/22/are-walking-and-cycling-as-green-as-we-imagine/