Vehicle tailpipe emission testing procedures; Spark-ignition reciprocating or rotary internal combustion piston engines (HS 8407); Compression-ignition internal combustion piston engines (diesel or semi-diesel engines) (HS 8408); Motor vehicles for the transport of ten or more persons, including the driver (HS 8702); Motor cars and other motor vehicles principally designed for the transport of persons (other than those of heading 87.02), including station wagons and racing cars (HS 8703); Motor vehicles for the transport of goods (HS 8704); Special purpose motor vehicles, other than those principally designed for the transport of persons or goods (for example, breakdown lorries (wreckers), crane lorries (mobile cranes), fire fighting vehicles, concrete mixer lorries (concrete-mixers), road sweeper lorries (road sweepers), spraying lorries (spraying vehicles), mobile workshops, mobile radiological units) (HS 8705); Quality (ICS 03.120), Air quality (ICS 13.040), Test conditions and procedures in general (ICS 19.020), Road vehicle systems (ICS 43.040), Internal combustion engines for road vehicles (ICS 43.060)

Vehicle Test Procedure Adjustments for Tier 3 Certification Test Fuel (23 page(s), in English)

Notice of proposed rulemaking - The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to make adjustments to certain laboratory tailpipe emission testing procedures for automobiles, light trucks, and heavy-duty pickup trucks and vans as the result of a test fuel change that was finalized as a part of EPA's 2014 Tier 3 vehicle emissions rule. In that rule, EPA changed its laboratory test fuel to be more similar to typical gasoline currently in use. In the Tier 3 Final Rulemaking, EPA required vehicle manufacturers to perform greenhouse gas (GHG) and CAFE fuel economy testing on the new Tier 3 test fuel, beginning for model year 2020 and later vehicles. Changes to the fuel used for emissions testing can result in a change in emission results on the tests. When we adopted the Tier 3 test fuel, we indicated that we intended to undertake rulemaking to re-align test results from GHG and CAFE fuel economy testing on the new Tier 3 test fuel so they are consistent with test results from testing on the original Tier 2 test fuel, in order to avoid an effective change in the stringency of the GHG and CAFE standards. Specifically, EPA is now proposing adjustment factors to apply to both vehicle GHG and fuel economy test results for the GHG and CAFE programs and the Fuel Economy and Environment Label. In addition, we propose that the shift to required use of the new fuel for all vehicle testing be phased in through Model Year 2024, but required in Model Year 2025. Because the purpose of the rule is simply to realign testing results in response to the test fuel change, there would be no significant costs associated with the proposed action.