LesinSD

Anybody have any info on AB 2628? I saw that it pass both houses and is sitting on Schwarzenegger’s desk right now. A bill it is reported that he is in favor of signing. I know all the hybrid people are jumping for joy over this but there is one part of the bill that may be good new for us.
Section 5205.5 part a subsection 2 states: A vehicle that was produced during the 2004 model year or earlier and meets California ultra-low emission vehicle (ULEV) standard for exhaust emissions and the federal ILEV standard. AB2628

Does this mean that the TL will be included for the HOV pass? Please say yes.

Shinj1EVA

So what exactly is ULEV2?

1995hoo

In a word, no, unless you retrofit your TL to run on compressed natural gas or propane. ILEV stands for "inherently low emissions vehicle" and the standard essentially applies to a number of different alternative-fuel systems, of which CNG and propane are the most common. You could retrofit your TL, but it wouldn't be a great idea unless you plan to use the car exclusively for commuting.

We have similar things here in Virginia in that certain vehicles get exemptions into the HOV lanes; I have two colleagues who own CNG-powered vehicles for precisely that purpose. Here you have to get a special license plate so that the cops can easily confirm your eligibility.

arex

Yeah, it's gotta meet both ULEV and ILEV to qualify. If it was just any ULEV, then any possible benefit would be erased because every single Honda would have free access to the HOV lanes (up to 75,000 cars, at least).

LesinSD

Ah darn it. I was hoping ULEV was enough.

DWP

You can track the status of AB 2628 here:
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/bilinfo.html
The bill was amended six times after it was introduced in February. The latest version is here:
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/bill/a...mended_sen.pdf
It is currently "enrolled", meaning (as LesinSD said) that it has gone to the Governor for his action. Ahnold has a few bills waiting for his action when he gets back from Nyahk - about a thousand or so.

Casper42

I'm not sure about the new bill youyr talking about, but there is an existing bill on the books that says ULEV till end of 2003 and SULEV from 2004 till 06 or 07. But the problem with that (as already mentioned), is you have to be ILEV too and almost nothing gets ILEV without being Natural Gas or pure Electric.

You could always trade in your TL for the Civic GX.
$20,000 for 100hp

Sherlock

to answer what is ULEV2...

in order of cleanliness: Standard, TLEV, LEV, ULEV, ULEV-2, SULEV, PZEV, NZEV. hows that for a lineup.

TLEV is "transitional" LEV, some MB's and others are this, it means sometimes it's really clean, but in general it just barely makes the cut.

LEV is like 50% cleaner than baseline, ULEV is greater than that, ULEV-2 again greater than that, and the SULEV's are even cleaner.

The 04 Accord 4cyl qualifies as PZEV, Partial Zero emissions, yes.. meaning damn near nothing from a combustion engine.. pretty friggin impressive.

NZEV is Near-Zero for EV cars, they had to delete the ZEV rating as people said that the batteries were "waste" at the end of their lives, and the electric companies produced waste to make the electricity to charge a fully Electric Car.

To have a 11:1, 270hp, 3.2L V6 be a ULEV-2 is a GREAT feat of engineering and Honda should be applauded for it.

In the past, making it to the next emissions level meant less horsepower as it was more restrictive, leaner, blah blah blah.. now it means nothing, they can have their cake and eat it too.

(BTW, the exhaust manifold moulded into the block and the 3 cats are huge part of this)