EPA finalizes first clean trucks rule in 21 years, but it could be better
The EPA has finalized a long-awaited update to their truck emissions rules, the first update to US truck clean air standards since 2001, though environmental groups say the EPA could do better.
The new rule starts in model year 2027 and is up to 80% stronger than the current standard. It will reduce smog-forming Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) emissions from trucks by almost half by 2045.
NOx is one of the primary components of smog, and is emitted by the combustion of gasoline and diesel. Diesel engines tend to produce much more NOx than gasoline engines, so heavy diesel trucks have significant NOx impacts. About 16-18% of NOx emissions come from heavy duty trucks (though in some states it’s higher, like in California at 32%), despite them accounting for a smaller percentage of total road traffic.
So, regulating the relatively smaller amount of trucks can have outsized influence on overall NOx emissions.
The EPA claims this new regulation will result in several benefits by 2045:
- Up to 2,900 fewer premature deaths
- 6,700 fewer hospital admissions and emergency department visits
- 18,000 fewer cases of childhood asthma
- 3.1 million fewer cases of asthma symptoms and allergic rhinitis symptoms
- 78,000 fewer lost days of work
- 1.1 million fewer lost school days for children
- $29 billion in annual net benefits
The regulations will also “increase useful life of governed vehicles by 1.5–2.5 times, and will yield emissions warranties that are 2.8–4.5 times longer,” according to the EPA.
But not everyone is happy with the new rule. While it’s a big step forward for diesel truck emissions regulation, environmental groups had hoped the rule would focus more on zero-emissions trucks, rather than merely making cleaner versions of dirty diesels.
The Natural Resources Defense Council hailed the EPA for finally updating these rules after 20 years of inaction, but claimed that “these standards fall short, and the agency missed a critical opportunity to slash soot and smog and accelerate the shift to the cleanest vehicles” – by which it means fully-electric trucks. And the American Lung Association praised the rule, looking forward to the EPA’s plans to issue more rules on cleaner trucks starting next year.
On the other side, the Diesel Technology Forum, an industry group in favor of expanded diesel trucking, seemed quite happy with the new rule. They claim this will help accelerate the turnover of old diesel trucks to newer, more efficient models – and think that electric trucks are not the ideal solution for trucking.
Thankfully, this isn’t the end, as far as the EPA goes. The EPA plans to release further rules for greenhouse gas emissions in heavy duty vehicles starting spring of 2023, and these rules will also go into effect in 2027. Today’s rule change focused on NOx emissions, but CO2 is another important emission to regulate in order to fight climate change.
Transportation is the largest source of emissions in the US. Medium- and Heavy-duty trucks combined are responsible for 26% of US transportation CO2 emissions. Light-duty vehicles are responsible for more – 57%, a majority of transport emissions – but there are a lot more of them than there are of trucks.
The world is currently well-above pre-industrial CO2 levels. Any carbon-positive technology, such as diesel, can only make CO2 levels go up when they need to be going down. The first step towards getting back to ~350ppm CO2 from our current measure of 416ppm (and rising) is to move to zero-carbon technology in every sector, particularly the most-polluting ones like transportation. Putting more new diesel engines on the road just ensures that they will continue polluting for decades into the future, and which will eventually need to be replaced by zero-emission trucks anyway.
The EPA had planned to issue truck CO2 rules this year, but due to new incentives for zero-emission vehicles in the Inflation Reduction Act, they pushed back their decision until this coming spring. With up to $40,000 available for commercial zero-emission vehicles and several new electric trucks just recently coming to market, the EPA seems confident that it can issue stricter CO2 rules than previously planned.
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The Dodge Charger Daytona EV made headlines when it rolled out fake engine noises as a way to make the EV appeal to muscle car drivers. As it turns out, they weren’t the right sort of fake engine noises – and now Stellantis has to recall 8,000 of them for a fix.
According to the ChryCo fans at Mopar Insider, Stellantis is recalling ~8,390 examples of its 2024 to 2025 Dodge Charger Daytona EVs because of an exterior amplifier that may be missing critical enabling the amp to emit exterior sounds – including the Federally mandated pedestrian warning sounds designed to keep pedestrians safe.
What’s more, the recall’s “suspect period” reportedly begins on 30APR2024, when the first 2024 Dodge Charger Daytona was produced, and ends 18MAR2025 … when the last Charger EV was produced.
RECALL CHRONOLOGY
- On April 17, 2025, the FCA US LLC (“FCA US”) Technical Safety and Regulatory Compliance (“TSRC”) organization opened an investigation into certain 2024–2025 model year Dodge Charger vehicles that may not emit exterior sound.
- From April 17, 2025, through May 13, 2025, FCA US TSRC met with FCA US Engineering and the supplier to understand all potential failure modes associated with the issue. They also reviewed warranty data, field records, and customer assistance records to determine field occurrences.
- On May 14, 2025, the FCA US TSRC organization determined that a vehicle build issue existed on certain vehicles related to a lack of EV exterior sound, potentially resulting in noncompliance with FMVSS No. 141.
Without the software patch, the vehicles don’t comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) No. 141, “Minimum Sound Requirements for Hybrid and Electric Vehicles.” The rule requires noisemakers for EVs and hybrids when operating under 19 mph, the safest speeds for pedestrians.
Basically, if you have a Dodge Charger EV, expect to get a recall notice.
It just keeps getting funnier
If you’re not familiar with the Charger Daytona EV’s “Fratzonic Chambered Exhaust,” it’s a system that employs a combination of digital sound synthesis and a physical tuning chamber (translation: a speaker) to produce a 126 decibel sound that approximately imitates a Hellcat Hemi V8 ICE. That’s loud enough to cause most people physical pain, according to Yale University – putting it somewhere between a loud rock concert and a passenger jet at takeoff.
While you could argue that such noises are part and parcel with powerful combustion, they’re completely irrelevant to an EV, and speak to a particular sort of infantile delusion of masculinity that I, frankly, have never been able to wrap my head around. Something akin to the, “Hey, look at me! I’m a big tough guy!” attention-whoring of a suburban Harley rider in a “Sons of Anarchy” novelty cut, without even enough courage to ride a motorcycle, you know?
You know – and I bet you can help me dial in the the comparison to perfection (and help me explain why the car just isn’t selling) in the comments section at the bottom of the page.
SOURCE: Mopar Insiders; featured image by Stellantis.
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Is it an electric van or a truck? The Kia PV5 might be in a class of its own. Kia’s electric van was recently spotted charging in public with an open bed, and it looks like a real truck.
Kia’s electric van morphs into a truck with an open bed
The PV5 is the first of a series of electric vans as part of Kia’s new Platform Beyond Vehicle business (PBV). Kia claims the PBVs are more than vans, they are “total mobility solutions,” equipped with Hyundai’s advanced software.
Based on the flexible new EV platform, E-GMP.S, Kia has several new variants in the pipeline, including camper vans, refrigerated trucks, luxury “Prime” models for passenger use, and an open bed model.
Kia launched the PV5 Passenger and Cargo in the UK earlier this year for business and personal use. We knew more were coming, but now we are getting a look at a new variant in public.
Although we got a brief glimpse of it earlier this month driving by in Korea, Kia’s electric van was spotted charging in public with an open bed.
The folks at HealerTV found the PV5 variant with an open bed parked in Korea, offering us a good look from all angles.
From the front, it resembles the Passenger and Cargo variants, featuring slim vertical LED headlights. However, from the side, it’s an entirely different vehicle. The truck sits low to the ground, similar to the one captured driving earlier this month.
When you look at it from the back, you can’t even tell it’s the PV5. It looks like any other cargo truck with an open bed.
The PV5 open bed measures 5,000 mm in length, 1,900 mm in width, and 2,000 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 3,000 mm. Although Kia has yet to say how big the bed will be, the reporter mentions it doesn’t look that deep, but it’s wide enough to carry a good load.
The open bed will be one of several PV5 variants that Kia plans to launch in Europe and Korea later this year, alongside the Passenger, Cargo, and Chassis Cab configurations.
In Europe, the PV5 Passenger is available with two battery pack options: 51.5 kWh or 71.2 kWh, providing WLTP ranges of 179 miles and 249 miles, respectively. The Cargo variant is rated with a WLTP range of 181 miles or 247 miles.
Kia will reveal battery specs closer to launch for the open bed variant, but claims it “has the longest driving range among compact commercial EVs in its class.”
In 2027, Kia will launch the larger PV7, followed by an even bigger PV9 in 2029. There’s also a smaller PV1 in the works, which is expected to arrive sometime next year or in 2027.
What do you think of Kia’s electric van? Will it be a game changer? With plenty of variants on the way, it has a good chance. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: HealerTV
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