Kg CO2 per litre |
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If you burn a litre of diesel this will produce 2.6391 kgs of carbon dioxide. Petrol has a lower carbon content and so produces 2.3035 kgs of CO2. The precise figures depend on the quality of the fuel. Since fuel weighs less than a kilogram per litre, it is interesting to see how the weight of emissions is multiplied by the addition of oxygen. The tables below show how the official test figures for CO2 emissions and combined MPG can be equated to see how individual vehicles perform in terms of CO2 per litre. Some cars appear to do better than the standard chemistry would suggest, whereas others do worse. So these figures show how inaccurate the testing mechanism can be, and how different engines skew the results. The official tests measure exhaust gases only and then calculate the fuel consumption.
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Top 10 CO2/litre petrol cars | |||||||
| Make | Model | Derivative | CO2 (kg)/litre | CO2 (gpkm) | Litre per 100km | MPG (combined) | List price |
| Koenigsegg | CC | 4.7 CCX V8 | 2.16 | 368 | 17.02 | 16.6 | £718,296 |
| Infiniti | G37 Convertible | G37 GT Auto | 2.21 | 264 | 11.92 | 23.7 | £40,335 |
| Renault | Clio 3 Door | 1.2 TCe Dynamique TomTom 100 | 2.22 | 129 | 5.80 | 48.7 | £13,600 |
| Renault | Clio 5 Door | 1.2 TCe 16V 20th Special Edition 100 | 2.22 | 129 | 5.80 | 48.7 | £14,950 |
| Renault | Clio Sport Tourer | 1.2 TCe 16V Expression 100 | 2.22 | 129 | 5.80 | 48.7 | £13,275 |
| SEAT | Leon | 1.6 16V 102PS S | 2.23 | 169 | 7.59 | 37.2 | £14,565 |
| Vauxhall | Insignia Saloon | 2.0i Turbo SE | 2.24 | 197 | 8.80 | 32.1 | £24,565 |
| Ferrari | 458 Italia | 4.5L V8 458 Italia | 2.24 | 307 | 13.71 | 20.6 | £169,546 |
| Volkswagen | Caddy Maxi | 2.0 EcoFuel 109PS Life | 2.24 | 157 | 7.01 | 40.3 | £18,033 |
| Maserati | GranTurismo | 4.2 V8 Automatic | 2.24 | 330 | 14.71 | 19.2 | £80,450 |
Bottom 10 CO2/litre petrol cars | |||||||
| Make | Model | Derivative | CO2 (kg)/litre | CO2 (gpkm) | Litre per 100km | MPG (combined) | List price |
| Audi | A4 allroad | 2.0 TFSI quattro 210PS S tronic | 2.73 | 194 | 7.10 | 39.8 | £32,245 |
| Infiniti | FX | FX30d GT | 2.65 | 238 | 9.00 | 31.4 | £45,150 |
| Hyundai | i30 | 1.6 Premium auto | 2.63 | 150 | 5.70 | 49.6 | £17,450 |
| Mercedes-Benz | E-Class Saloon New | E 63 AMG G-Tronic | 2.63 | 295 | 11.21 | 25.2 | £71,900 |
| Mazda | Mazda RX-8 | RX-8 R3 | 2.60 | 299 | 11.48 | 24.6 | £25,540 |
| Mercedes-Benz | A-Class Hatchback 5dr | A 180 Avantgarde SE Auto | 2.52 | 166 | 6.60 | 42.8 | £20,000 |
| Vauxhall | Corsa 5-door | 1.4 Exclusiv 100PS Auto | 2.51 | 138 | 5.50 | 51.4 | £13,975 |
| Ford | Focus 3dr | 2.5i RS 500 | 2.50 | 235 | 9.38 | 30.1 | £35,450 |
| Volkswagen | Tiguan | 1.4 TSI Match 4MOTION 150PS | 2.50 | 185 | 7.39 | 38.2 | £22,845 |
| Chevrolet | Captiva | 2.4 LS 5-Seat | 2.50 | 217 | 8.69 | 32.5 | £19,145 |