Fiat Is the Less-Polluting Automaker in Europe

CO2 emissions and fuel economy are two of the over-discussed subjects since the beginning of the economic turmoil, with the majority of car manufacturers altering their production lines to focus on less-polluting and more fuel-efficient models. In fact, customers are the ones determining the automotive trends, analysts said, so if they are looking for this kind of cars, automakers have to comply. So, given the fact that most companies struggled to reduce emissions, which one had the lowest emissions in 2008?

JATO Consult, a consultancy division of JATO Dynamics, says Fiat is the leader when it comes to the lowest CO2 emissions in 2008, as the Italian automaker recorded an average of 134 grams per kilometer (compare to 137 g/km in 2007). Peugeot came second with 138 g/km, Autonews reported today citing the study conducted by the aforementioned consultancy firm.

Citroen completed the podium with an average of 142.4 g/km, "slightly higher" than the 2007 figures, especially due to a bunch of larger models debuted during the last year.

Automakers slashed the average CO2 emission figure in 2008 by 5.3 g/km to 154 g/km, David Di Girolamo, head of JATO Consult, was quoted as saying by the aforementioned source.

As we're sure you know, governments across Europe struggle to support domestic automakers to continue their efforts in the green car sector, with most countries offering incentives and tax reductions to those developing less-polluting models. France for example provided 3.3 billion euros in government funds to local car manufacturers to continue their domestic operations and develop new green cars, particularly focused on fuel-economy and CO2 emissions.