Am I helping reduce green-house gasses by riding a motor scooter?
Mr. Bad Day the Plumber asked:
Last summer I bought a yamaha vino 125, mostly because it gets 70 mpg.
I assume it also helps reduce greenhouse emissions, but does it really? Does a motor scooter burn gasoline as clean as my Honda Civic?
Just wondering.
Tags: Honda Civic, Motor Scooter, Scooter Yamaha
December 5th, 2008 at 10:17 pm
No. But you are saving a little money on gas.
December 7th, 2008 at 11:06 pm
Yes. Since every gallon of gas emits about 5 lbs of carbon (mostly as CO2 but also as particulates), the more fuel efficient the vehicle, the less carbon you are putting into the atmosphere.
December 8th, 2008 at 9:48 pm
If you purchase in the USA you should be reducing gasses by the fact you are burning less and going slower.
December 12th, 2008 at 7:56 am
Yes, You are using less fuel which in turn is putting less pollution into the air!!! Good for you!
December 14th, 2008 at 4:49 pm
if the engines of whatever vehicle you use burn any hydrocarbon based fuel, its unavoidable, you will emit CO2…
obviously smaller engines burn less fuel….
your honda its not clean in that terms…..
if the combustion is correct you get mostly CO2 and water vapor….. but if it is bad combustion you get also CO which is by the way a very very toxic fume…
December 17th, 2008 at 8:07 am
smaller engines that mix oil and gas are the worse but your 125cc probably doesn’t do that. the scooter doesn’t burn as cleanly as the civic because the civic has a catalytic converter but since you get better mileage you use less fuel and emit less CO2 mile for mile.
the scooter also consumed less energy to manufacture meaning that it was more efficient the day you bought it than the larger, heavier car. all the upholstery and other junk in the car also have an environmental ‘cost’
hopefully, you are evolving toward a bicycle!
December 17th, 2008 at 10:20 am
Yes, the better the MPG, the better the vehicle is for the enviornment. You’re expelling less harmful pollutants. Great job.
December 18th, 2008 at 11:48 pm
CO2 emissions are directly related to the amount of gasoline used, so yes you are reducing emissions. Your Vino 125 is a clean burning 4-stroke and it does have a catalytic converter, according to Yamaha’s website. It is required to meet the same standards for other pollutants as any other motorcycle. This is not as strict as the standards for cars, but still very good. In the future, motorcycles will probably have to meet the same standards as cars.
December 19th, 2008 at 5:59 pm
Yes, I am sorry to say the motor scooter will help. When you get killed riding on the highways on those mini-bikes, you will no longer have a carbon foot print.