The ongoing scandal over emission data in the USA has put into the public domain what many in the motor trade have known for years. That is the message of independent emission test specialist Emissions Analytics who say that consumers are constantly mislead by car makers over emissions and fuel consumption regardless of the legality of the situation.

Emissions Analytics was set up four years ago to understand the differences in emissions and fuel economy between the laboratory test and real-world driving conditions. To date it has tested over 1000 cars, including over 200 European diesel passenger cars. Emissions Analytics has consistently found in real life road tests that regulated nitrogen oxides are four times above the official level, determined in the laboratory and that real-world emissions of carbon dioxide are almost one-third above that suggested by official figures.  For car buyers, this means that fuel economy on average is one quarter worse than advertised. 

The company points out that regardless of the legal situation, consumer trust in vehicle manufacturer data is now gone. It will be launching an independent accreditation initiative shortly and has called for changes in the way manufacturer figures are tested and calculated.