Car buyers now will soon be able to compare models based on government certified fuel efficiency labels, which was in discussion for about 4 years. The decision will force car manufacturers to put up fuel efficiency labels certified by government on every car they sell in the country. The labelling also asks manufacturers to improve their efficiency year by year, which promises Indian vehicles to equate them with the European standards by up to 2020. Whereas, labels are to become mandatory soon, mileage standards will come into effect by 2015, which provides enough time to manufactures to improve their technology to meet with the suggested standards and norms.
Fuel efficiency labelling will help the customers to know the exact fuel efficiency of a car and will give a fare idea on what other cars in the competition are up to, under standard test conditions. Currently the top 10 car makers of India hold average fuel efficiency around 16.42 km/ltr, which has been promised to go up to 18.15 km /ltr by 2015, and 20.79 km/ltr by 2020 meeting the international standards.
The proposal has been criticized and opposed by the companies on various grounds like poor road conditions, fuel quality and congestion in major cities. SIAM (Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers) has asked government to alter the norms. Although government has made it clear that such objections are invalid, as the expected rate of improving efficiency ie 2.8 % is feasible, and OEMs have been asked to do even lesser in the first three years.
Car manufacturers that are not able to meet the criteria will have to cough out upto Rs 10 lakh as penalties. Penalties will continue to be levied until corrective measures are taken, at the rate of Rs 10,000 per day (that would be easy, won’t it) upto a cap of Rs 46 lakh. If a manufacturer fails to comply even after that, its model may be removed from the market.
Also see – Cars to carry fuel efficiency labels by March 2012
