General information

Ecoscore is an environmental score for vehicles, which gives an indication of the overall environmental friendliness of the vehicle on a scale of 0 to 100. The higher the score, the more environmentally friendly the vehicle. The Ecoscore is an absolute score, and thus does not take into account the size of the vehicle, number of seats, etc.

To calculate the score, several damage effects are taken into account: climate change, air quality (impact on human health & ecosystems) and noise pollution. Both emissions during driving and impacts associated with fuel production (such as electricity generation for electric vehicles and oil refining for diesel) are included. The Ecoscore environmental assessment combines these different impacts into one indicator. Ecoscore thus goes beyond CO2 emissions or the Euro stage, which only reflect part of the impact. 

On the site, you can look for and compare the Ecoscore of different cars and vans. Both new and old vehicles are included in the database. The search section contains filters to facilitate the search. For instance, you can search for the Ecoscore of certain cars, look up the Ecoscore of your specific car based on the VIN, or calculate the Ecoscore yourself. 

In addition, you will find a data visualisation tool on the website which allows you to compile your own statistics and graphs of the Belgian car fleet.

As VITO is completely dependent on data obtained from third parties to calculate the Ecoscores of the various vehicles available on the Belgian market, VITO cannot guarantee that the displayed Ecoscore of a vehicle is the correct one.

There are several control mechanisms built in, but they do not provide absolute certainty. To be sure about your car's Ecoscore, you need to calculate it yourself using the calculator tool and based on data from the car's Certificate of Conformity.

The answer to this question is 'no'. The Ecoscore uses a well-to-wheel approach. This means that it takes into account on the one hand (exhaust) emissions during the use of the vehicle, and on the other hand emissions associated with the production and distribution of the fuel (such as electricity production in the case of electric vehicles, or oil refining in the case of petrol and diesel vehicles). Very little standardised data can be found on emissions associated with the production and recycling of a vehicle, and certainly not from every vehicle that appears on the Belgian market.

CO2 emissions are always mentioned on new cars. You will also find it in advertisements. Some manufacturers advertise 'very environmentally friendly cars' that emit little CO2. But CO2 emissions say nothing about the other emissions, just think of the particulate matter or NOx emissions of diesel cars, or electric vehicles with no (exhaust) CO2 emissions at all. CO2 emissions also say nothing about the emissions associated with fuel production and distribution. So a car with low CO2 emissions is not necessarily an environmentally friendly vehicle. In addition to CO2, the Ecoscore also takes into account other emissions (also during fuel production and distribution) and thus does give you an overall picture.

A vehicle brought to the market must meet certain conditions. For example, Europe imposes certain limits on NOx, CO, hydrocarbons and particulate matter emissions (at the exhaust). These standards are getting stricter and higher each time. Since 2015, for example, all passenger cars have been subject to the Euro 6 stage, which is stricter than previous stages.

Yet this Euro stage does not give an overall picture of how environmentally friendly your car is. It does not take into account CO2 emissions, for example, or the emissions associated with the production and distribution of fuel . There is also an important difference between the restrictions on petrol cars and diesel cars. For example, a Euro 4 diesel car is certainly not as environmentally friendly as a Euro 4 petrol car. Even within the same fuel type and euro stage, important differences in emissions are still possible. For example, a Euro 4 diesel with a particulate filter emits more than 90% less particulate matter than a Euro 4 diesel without a particulate filter.

The Ecoscore takes into account the individual emissions of each car and also takes into account CO2 emissions, and the emissions associated with the production and distribution of the fuel. The Ecoscore thus does give you an overall picture.

1 liter of diesel weighs 835 grammes. Diesel consist for 86,2% of carbon, or 720 grammes of carbon per liter diesel. In order to combust this carbon to CO2, 1920 grammes of oxygen is needed. The sum is then 720 + 1920 = 2640 grammes of CO2/liter diesel.

 

An average consumption of 5 liters/100 km then corresponds to 5 l x 2640 g/l / 100 (per km) = 132 g CO2/km.

 

1 liter of petrol weighs 750 grammes. Petrol consists for 87% of carbon, or 652 grammes of carbon per liter of petrol. In order to combust this carbon to CO2, 1740 grammes of oxygen is needed. The sum is then 652 + 1740 = 2392 grammes of CO2/liter of petrol.

 

An average consumption of 5 liters/100 km then corresponds to 5 l x 2392 g/l / 100 (per km) = 120 g CO2/km.

 

1 liter of LPG weighs 550 grammes. LPG consists for 82,5% of carbon, or 454 grammes of carbon per liter of LPG. In order to combust this carbon to CO2, 1211 grammes of oxygen is needed. The sum is then 454 + 1211 = 1665 grammes of CO2/liter of LPG.

 

An average consumption of 5 liters / 100 km then corresponds to 5 l x 1665 g/l / 100 (per km) = 83 g of CO2/km.

 

CNG is a gaseous fuel (natural gas), stored under high pressure. Consequently, the consumption can be expressed in Nm3/100km, but also in kg/100km. Nm3 stands for a cubic meter under normal conditions (1 atm and 0 ┬░ C). Consumption of natural gas vehicles is, however, most often expressed in kg/100km.

Different types of natural gas are available in Belgium, roughly divided into two categories: low and high calorific gas (L- and H-gas). CO2 emissions differ between both categories, and strongly depends on the composition and origin of the gas. The calculations below are therefore merely indicative. The public CNG stations in Belgium mainly offer low calorific gas. You will see that the CO2 emissions per kg of H-gas is higher than that of L-gas. H-gas, however, contains more energy, so you will need less kg of gas per 100 km, which ensures that, at least in theory, the average CO2 emissions from CNG vehicles is independent of the gas type used.

 

1 kg of L-gas consists for 61,4% of carbon, or 614 grammes of carbon per kg of L-gas. In order to combust this carbon to CO2, 1638 grammes of oxygen is needed. The sum is then 614 + 1638 = 2252 grammes of CO2/kg of L-gas.

 

An average consumption of 5 kg / 100 km then corresponds to 5 kg x 2252 g/kg = 113 g CO2/km.

 

1 kg of H-gas consists for 72,7% of carbon, or 727 grammes of carbon per kg of H-gas. In order to combust this carbon to CO2, 1939 grammes of oxygen is needed. The sum is then 727 + 1939 = 2666 grammes of CO2/kg of H-gas.

 

An average consumption of 4,2 kg / 100 km then corresponds to 4,2 kg x 2666 g/kg = 112 g of CO2/km.

The easiest way, is to use the calculation module. Choose the euro standard, the fuel type, and move the slider to 'Calculate using all emission data'. The necessary data can be found on the certificate of conformity of the car. Pay attention to the required units of the data in the calculation module!

Yes, although it will be an approximate Ecoscore. Go to the calculation module, choose Euro 6 and the fuel type, and leave the slider on 'Calculate based on CO2'. Then all you have to do is enter the car's CO2 emissions to get an approximate Ecoscore. For the missing data, estimated values including an uncertainty margin are used.