Closer to real consumption: WLTP replacing New European Driving Cycle (NEDC)

From 1 September 2017, fuel consumption figures for new cars entering the market have been determined using a new procedure, the WLTP. The WLTP will then be required of all new vehicle registrations from 1 September 2018. WLTP stands for Worldwide Harmonized Light-Duty Vehicles Test Procedure and is used to determine the fuel consumption and exhaust emissions of vehicles. Find out what that means for you and your Audi here.

What is WLTP?

Customers are increasingly relying on fuel consumption and emissions levels when choosing which car to buy. Read here how these values will be determined in the future with the new test method.

Good reasons for the WLTP

From autumn 2017, the NEDC laboratory test for cars will be replaced by the WLTP. New test parameters provide for more realistic, higher values. Read here to find out exactly how the procedures differ in practice.

NEDC and WLTP

From autumn 2017, the NEDC laboratory test for cars will be replaced by the WLTP. New test parameters provide for more realistic, higher values. Read here to find out exactly how the procedures differ in practice.

NEDC vs. WLTP

The standardized NEDC drive cycle applies to all passenger cars and light commercial vehicles. It was introduced by the European Union in 1992 to measure fuel consumption and vehicle-specific emissions and deliver comparable values. You can see at a glance the underlying assumptions here.

Graph of NEDC km/h vs seconds

NEDC
  • The temperature in the test chamber was 20-30°C
  • The distance was about 11 km.
  • The cycle lasted about 20 minutes.
  • The cycle consisted of two phases:
    • approx. 13 minutes of simulated city driving
    • approx. 7 minutes of simulated cross-country driving
  • The average speed is about 33 km/h.
  • The vehicle was not moving 25% of the time.
  • The highest speed tested was 120 km/h.
  • The points where gears were shifted on models with manual transmission were precisely specified.
  • Special equipment and air conditioning were not taken into account.
WLTP
  • The temperature in the test chamber is 23°C
  • The distance is about 23 km.
  • The cycle lasts about 30 minutes.
  • It consists of four phases (low, medium, high, extra-high).
  • The average speed is about 47 km/h.
  • The vehicle was not moving 13% of the time.
  • The highest speed tested was over 130 km/h.
  • The gear shift points are calculated individually for each vehicle in advance.
  • Vehicle weight and additional equipment are included in the evaluation.

Objectives of the new procedure

The WLTP procedure redefines the test parameters for determining fuel consumption and exhaust emissions. The advantages at a glance:

Transparency

In the future, the actual everyday consumption of a vehicle will be better estimated. WLTP considers a driving profile closer to everyday reality than the previous NEDC standard, which was more of a synthetic laboratory test and served primarily to compare different vehicles. While consumption levels were measured under abstract laboratory conditions with the NEDC, the WLTP will provide a more accurate forecast of the vehicle's actual consumption. WLTP claims to simulate a more realistic driving style and thus achieve far more realistic results.

Standards

One of the main objectives of the WLTP is a uniform procedure for measuring exhaust emissions and energy consumption for different types of engines such as gasoline, diesel, CNG, and even electric. A vehicle of the same type must deliver the same test result at all times in all parts of the world, if the WLTP cycle has been followed correctly. This required comparability makes lab testing unavoidable. Fuel consumption and emissions are determined reliably and representatively on the chassis dynamometer as part of a dynamic driving profile.

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