'Super Ultra-Low Emission Vehicles' Acount for Over 80% of Nissan Sales in Japan

Nissan Motor Co., announced on July 31, 2006 that its Super Ultra-Low Emission Vehicles (SU-LEVs) accounted for more than 80 percent of its unit sales of gasoline-powered vehicles in Japan in May this year. SU-LEVs are vehicles that have achieved four-star status with exhaust emissions 75 percent or more below levels required by Japan's 2005 exhaust emission regulations.

According to Nissan's estimate, this SU-LEV ratio of 80 percent of sales is in effect the same as if fuel cell vehicles and electric vehicles accounted for 40 percent of its sales (based on units sold), in terms of reducing total emissions of nitrogen oxide (NOx) and hydrocarbons (HC).

Nissan has for years worked on the development of clean combustion and catalyst technology. Thanks to these efforts, the Bluebird Sylphy model, launched in Japan in August 2000, became the first vehicle certified under the country's SU-LEV certification system, introduced in 2003.

The SU-LEV rating criteria represent the most stringent level under a certification system for low-exhaust-emission vehicles, established by Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. SU-LEV standards (set in January 2004) are the strictest vehicle exhaust emissions in Japan, and imply that SU-LEV exhaust is as about clean as ambient air in the atmosphere.

http://www.nissan-global.com/EN/index.html
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http://www.japanfs.org/db/622-e

Posted: 2006/11/22 11:18:13 AM
Japanese version