Isn't it more environmentally friendly to keep old cars on the road?

Question

Every time someone scraps a car it is replaced by a new one that has created tons of CO2 during it's manufacture, surely keeping old cars for longer reduces CO2 emissions.

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker

Yes in principle but it won’t take away from the fact that cars any cars on the road are one of the biggest problems of pollution and due to lifestyle we can’t live without them. Electric cars are great for City life but that’s all. The main environmental problem is that there are too many people and growing…

Asker's Rating:

Asker's Comment:

Only three answers but all of them intelligent and thoughtful, but your point about population is what wins it.
People go on and on about carbon footprints etc but ignore the elephant in the room, that the world's population is becoming unmanageable.

Answer 2

Yes, the longer we keep a car, and therefore the fewer that we buy, means that less need to be produced, which saves a whole lot of energy, and CO2.

However, at the present time, government is trying to encourage spending, as there are an awful lot of unsold cars in store, and since cars over 10 years old are free from road tax, if you are persuaded to buy a new one, the government will be able to collect road tax from you. They are not so concerned about CO2, as encouraging spending, and getting in some tax revenue.

Answer 3

Of course it is. And just as not all new cars are as environmentally friendly as they could be, (they are still making SUVs and 4WDs which will attract the scrapping subsidy) not all old cars are gas-guzzlers.

I have a well maintained 1992 vehicle which returns over 40MPG and passes the MOT emissions test with flying colours every year. I only use it for journeys I am unable to cover on foot or by public transport or when carrying passengers makes the car journey a more economical alternative.

The "scrappage" payment is all about supporting the car industry.

I almost typed "the coal industry" but, of course, that was one industry that our political leaders of the day were happy to destroy. Had it been saved, we would not have been in the unfortunate financial position in which we find ourselves at the present time.The small level of subsidy required would have been recouped by massive savings on redundancy payments and state benefits. Not to mention the millions of pounds spent on fuel imports and policing the breaking of the mining unions, who's predictions have proved to be correct.

Sorry Alex, since when have ten year old vehicles been free of road tax?