We’ve all heard the buzz about electric cars being cleaner than gas-guzzlers. If you’re tired of hearing that simple statement, a group of smart folks went a step further. They built a tool, a calculator, so drivers can check their car’s pollution for themselves.
The debate about how electric and gas cars impact our planet often gets pretty heated. People just can’t seem to agree. Those who doubt electric vehicles often point out that we don’t have enough solid data. They also argue that we need to look at a car’s entire life. This includes everything from making the parts to what happens when the car is no longer useful.
Up until now, detailed comparisons between different kinds of cars and engines were hard to find. We needed more factors in the mix. To fill this gap, a team at the University of Michigan created a detailed study. They compared the pollution from various electric cars with similar gas-powered ones.
Beyond the research, they also launched a calculator. This lets any driver measure their car’s pollution. While anyone can test it, the results are most complete for people in the United States. That’s because it considers things like location and local climate.
Greg Keoleian, who led this new study, teaches at the University of Michigan’s School for Environment and Sustainability. He believes that making vehicles electric is a vital step for fighting climate change.
He shared, “Transportation causes 28% of all greenhouse gas emissions. We must lower these numbers to slow down future climate problems. We’re seeing more intense floods, wildfires, and droughts already.”
Electric Cars Still Win on Lower Emissions
The study looked at pollution from three common vehicle types: vans, sedans, and SUVs. It also explored four engine types: regular gas, hybrid electric, plug-in hybrid, and fully battery electric.
The researchers didn’t just stop there. They looked at many combinations of vehicles and engines. They also threw in other important details, like how people drive and where they live. They even considered the energy used at the very beginning and end of a car’s life.
The team’s findings were clear: battery electric cars produce the lowest lifetime emissions. This holds true for all of the connected US states, meaning it leaves out Alaska and Hawaii.
On average, gas-powered vans polluted the most. They put out 486 grams of carbon dioxide equivalent. The study found that switching to a hybrid van cuts this pollution by 23%. Moving to a fully electric van lowers it by an impressive 75%.
What about carrying heavy loads? More weight means more pollution for any car, electric or gas. But even with a heavy load of about 1134 kg, an electric van still pollutes 30% less. This is compared to a gas van carrying nothing.
The study also pointed out the least polluting vehicles. These are compact electric sedans. They generate less than 20% of the emissions per mile of a gas-powered van.
However, the “Achilles’ heel” for electric models appeared again: battery production. Making batteries for cars that travel very long distances added to their lifetime greenhouse gas output.
This in-depth study, published at pubs.acs.org, and its findings, verified by EurekAlert, offer valuable insights. You can try out the vehicle emissions calculator for yourself at vehicle-emissions-calculator.vercel.app. It’s a great way to understand your car’s true impact.
