Fiat, the Greenest Manufacturer in Europe in 2009

For the third year in a row, Italian manufacturer Fiat achieved the lowest average value for CO2 emissions of cars sold in 2009: 127.8 g/km (it was 133.7 g/km in 2009). The recognition was made by JATO, an automotive advisory and research services provider, operating in over 40 countries.

According to JATO, Fiat is ahead of major carmakers such as Toyota (130.1 g/km), Peugeot (133.6 g/km), Renault (137.5 g/km), Citroen (137.9 g/km), Ford (140.0 g/km), Opel/Vauxhall (148.9 g/km), Volkswagen (150.4 g/km), AUDI (160.9 g/km) and Mercedes (176.4 g/km).

Fiat recently announced it will debut the Twin-Air two-cylinder at the 2010 Geneva Auto Show in a Fiat 500 show car. The unit has a displacement of  900 cc, a power of 85 HP and CO2 emissions equal to 95 g/km.

Other solutions provided by Fiat already available include Multiair technology for petrol engines that helps cutting CO2 emissions by 25 percent, while at the same time increasing power by 10 percent.

Diesel engines are also improved, with the second-generation 1.3 Multijet engines delivering a power of up to 95 hp. With 8 injections per cycle, the 1.3 Multijet II improves low rpm torque delivery by up to 25 percent and cuts emissions by 6 percent.

Furthermore, Fiat has other innovative eco-tech solutions not strictly related to motor engineering, like the Start&Stop system, introduced on most models of the Euro 5 range. This reduces average fuel consumption by up to 12 percent on the urban cycle.

autoevolution will be attending the 2010 Geneva Auto Show, so stay tuned for some real up close and personal shots of the vehicles, as well as for first-hand details of the motorized contraptions presented at the event.