HONDA TOPS GREEN LABEL CHART
17 February 2005 - Honda

As the only manufacturer with a mass produced petrol electric vehicle in the top banding, Honda warmly welcomes the introduction of the new colour coded labelling that will appear on vehicles in UK car showrooms later this year.

The Insight, which emits only 80 grammes of CO2 per kilometre, places Honda right at the top of the tree, and along with the Civic IMA highlights the manufacturer as the only one with two petrol electric vehicles in the UK.

Honda piloted the scheme along with three other manufacturers in 2004 and found the response from customers was favourable. Some customers claimed that they would purchase based on fuel economy and environmental ratings.

''Any labelling that helps the buyer make a more informed choice with regard to environmental friendliness and fuel economy is good news for us,'' explains Steve Oliver, Honda''s Head Of Customer Division. ''In the wake of congestion charges, green credentials are becoming more prevalent in the purchase decision for our customers and this is a trend we expect to continue. Given that all our models have lower CO2 emissions than their sector averages we are in a strong position.''

But the environmentalists will not have it all their own way – MORI research on the pilot scheme suggested that for some customers labelling will make little difference – with the colour of the car, rather than the colour of the sticker being the all important influencer!

The sticker system also throws up some interesting information. Honda''s diesel
CR-V serves another example that 4x4s are not necessarily the poorest environmental performers.

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