Renault Disputes DUH Allegations of Espace's Excess Emissions

Kuala Lumpur: Renault has disputed the German Environmental Lobby Group - Deutsche Umwelthilfe's allegations of 1.6-litre turbodiesel in the Espace emitting 25 times more NOx than allowed under Euro 6 limits.

In a press statement, the French automaker has said that the DUH report “shows important variations in test findings which are not conclusive and require additional measurement.”

Renault has also cited earlier findings by an independent German institute ADAC, which tested Espace diesel model and found that it complied with the emission regulations. The automaker also added that it is “attempting to fully understand the tests in details especially in the findings published in August 2015.”

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DUH has stated that it found Renault Escape's 1.6-litre turbodiesel emitting excess levels of emissions while testing the model under the New European Driving Cycle. (NEDC). The excess emission levels were detected in total 5 separate tests conducted by University of Applied Sciences in Bern, Switzerland.

The green lobby group claims that “when run with a warm or hot engine, the 1.6-litre Espace of the latest Euro 6 diesel generation emitted up to 2.06 grammes of NOx per kilometre”. The vehicle met the statutory 80-milligramme cap only with a cold engine after "specific pre-conditioning". But Renault has disputed DUH allegations, reiterating that the Espace model ““complies with applicable regulations, just as all its vehicles.”

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The fifth-generation Renault Espace was unveiled as an all-new crossover model at the 2014 Paris Motor Show in October 2014. Built on the Renault-Nissan Alliance’s CMF (Common Module Family) platform, Renault Espace comes with three 1.6 -litre engine options with two diesel and one petrol engine.

Automakers have come under increased scrutiny for emissions levels since Volkswagen has admitted that it cheated U.S. diesel emissions tests in September, sparking the infamous Volkswagen 'Dieselgate' scandal, which has affected around 11 million vehicles worldwide besides forcing Volkswagen CEO, Martin Winterkorn, to step down from his position, and inflicting billions of euros to the automaker as regulatory fines, damages and recall costs.

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