Six Star Magazine Six Star Magazine Winter 2008/2009 | Page 21

SUBARU PZEV

T

here are plenty of good reasons
why eco-friendly vehicles are
becoming more popular than ever
with Canadian consumers. These vehicles
create fewer harmful emissions, thereby
reducing our impact on the environment.
But the truth of the matter is, some
eco-friendly vehicles demand a lot of
compromise on the part of the owner.
Hybrid vehicles, for example, cost
much more than their non-hybrid
equivalents. There are also some serious
concerns about the battery packs in hybrids:
They definitely take up a lot of storage
space and they might not last that long
before needing to be replaced – at which
point, greater concerns about disposal
and replacement costs arise.
As with hybrids, other alternative
fuel vehicles are also a noble pursuit,
but one filled with drawbacks. Apart
from the availability and cost of these
cars, the main compromise is the lack
of infrastructure; whether your car runs
on hydrogen, compressed natural gas,
ethanol or biodiesel, refueling stations are
still few and far between. And if you have
to drive an extra 20 km just to get to that
refueling station, how environmentally
friendly can that possibly be?
But now there’s another eco-friendly
car on the market that has none of these

drawbacks. A car that runs on readily
available regular fuel, yet reduces
smog-forming emissions. A car that
offers no compromises in power or
performance, yet won’t break the bank
either. Meet the 2009 Subaru Outback
PZEV Plus and Legacy PZEV.
Developed to meet California’s
vehicle emissions standards – the most
progressive and stringent standards
anywhere in North America – a PZEV
(Partial Zero Emission Vehicle) is the
cleanest-running gasoline-powered
vehicle on the road today. The California
Air Resources Board defines a PZEV as
a vehicle that meets their state’s Super
Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle (SULEV)
tailpipe standard, which is 90% cleaner
than the average new automobile. In
addition, a PZEV must have zero
evaporative emissions; this normally
takes place when fuel evaporates.
The PZEV has such stringent
pollution controls and the fuel-burning
process is so complete, the exhaust
produced can actually be cleaner
than the air outside. In certain cases,
the PZEV is even cleaner than some
hybrid or alternative fuel vehicles.
The Legacy PZEV and Outback PZEV
Plus are also SmartWay™ certified by
the U.S. Environmental Protection

Agency, meaning that they achieve strict,
predetermined levels for fuel economy
and tailpipe emissions.
But the eco-friendly story doesn’t
end there, the Subaru Outback PZEV Plus
and Legacy PZEV are built in the Subaru of
Indiana plant; in 2004, this facility became
the first U.S. automobile assembly
plant to directly landfill zero waste
material. This plant, over 800 acres in
rural Indiana, is also the first automotive
manufacturing site in the United States
to be named a Backyard Wildlife Habitat
by the National Wildlife Federation.
These two green vehicles are
powered by an ultra-efficient, 2.5-litre
SOHC 4-cylinder SUBARU BOXER engine
with i-Active Valve Lift System and PZEV
equipment producing 170 horsepower
and 170 lb-ft of torque – exactly t