Green NCAP releases the ratings of six cars: the Kia Sportage 1.6 T-GDI equipped with a 48V mild-hybrid system; the Mercedes-Benz T-Class T180; the Land Rover Range Rover D350; Ford Focus 1.0 EcoBoost Mild Hybrid and finally the Ford Puma 1.0 EcoBoost Flexifuel, which Green NCAP tested with two different fuels: standard E10 petrol and almost pure E85 bioethanol. The test results show that bioethanol has considerable benefits for the overall reduction of greenhouse gases and global impact on the environment.
The Range Rover D350 is a large and heavy luxurious SUV, equipped with a six-cylinder diesel engine with a power of 258 kW. Its mild-hybrid system cannot reduce the consumption to levels which would allow Green NCAP to award it higher results in the Energy Efficiency and Greenhouse Gas Indices. The consumption figures and the related greenhouse gas emissions are fair for a vehicle of this type, but still constitute a large impact on the environment. On the positive side, the Range Rover demonstrates that high fuel consumption is not necessarily at odds with good exhaust gas cleaning . The aftertreatment systems work well and robustly, and impresses with low particle number and NOx, especially in the Warm Lab Test. However, cold powertrain start tests and the conditions in the Highway Test reduce the results slightly and identify room for improvement. Short Urban Trips are not the Range Rover’s strength, whether for Clean Air or Efficiency. The combined results of the three indices allow the British SUV to score 1½ stars with an overall weighted score of 2.5.
Tested here is the Mercedes-Benz T-Class with a 1.3 L, 96 kW petrol engine. The engine comes from Renault and can be found in the Kangoo, which was tested by Green NCAP in June 2022. The T-Class is a multipurpose utility vehicle and its body is comparable to the VW Caddy and the Kangoo, both of which lost points in the Energy Efficiency Index due to relatively high fuel consumption. In general, around 7 l/100 km can be expected, which matches well with the declared figure. On the Highway, the number rises above 9 l/100 km, but for a standard real-world trip, around 6.5 l/100 km should be sufficient. Closely related to the consumption is the amount of emitted CO2 and here T-Class receives only 1.7 points, despite the bonus points granted for excellent methane and laughing gas control. The strong point of the car is the Clean Air Index, where it demonstrates high performance to reduce its polluting gases. The results are creditable, with minor deductions for particles and ammonia emissions. Thanks to that index, the Mercedes-Benz T180 comes out with a Weighted Overall Index of 4.1 and 2½ Green stars.
Tested here is the all-wheel drive version of the Kia Sportage 1.6 T-GDI with a 48V mild-hybrid system and an automatic transmission. The vehicle did not qualify for additional robustness testing and is rated only on the basis of the standard Green NCAP tests. The vehicle performed averagely in the Clean Air Index and collected half of the possible 10 points. While the results in the Warm Laboratory Test look promising, the Cold Test with cold powertrain start and the Highway Test significantly downgrade the scores. Better particle control, as well as higher robustness in reducing the NH3 and CO output, would benefit the Sportage. The vehicle is a relatively large and heavy SUV, and this is reflected in the car’s energy efficiency performance. The fuel consumption figures are high – e.g. 6.8 l/100 km in the Warm Lab Test and 9.3 l/100 km in the Highway Test – and do not allow for more than 3.2 points in the Energy Efficiency Index.
The Greenhouse Gas Index is the area where the tested Sportage performs most poorly. Although methane and laughing gas are well controlled, the CO2 emissions measured at the tailpipe are substantial. This is caused directly by the relatively high fuel consumption levels. Adding the greenhouse gases related to the production and supply of the fuel (Well-to-Wheel+ approach), the Greenhouse Gas Index receives marginal 1.5/10 points. The declared CO2 value and fuel consumption match Green NCAP’s results. In total, the Weighted Overall Index of the Sportage is 3.2 and is enough for 2 Green stars.