United States Air and Radiation EPA420-F-02-039
Environmental Protection September 2002
Agency
Office of Transportation and Air Quality
Regulatory
Announcement
Frequently Asked Questions from
Off-Highway Motorcycle Riders
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has adopted emission
standards for recreational vehicles, including snowmobiles, off-highway
motorcycles and ATVs. This information sheet addresses questions we
have heard from off-highway motorcycle owners.
Why is EPA adopting emission standards for off-
highway motorcycles?
Off-highway motorcycles currently emit about 110,000 tons of hydrocar-
bons (HC), 160,000 tons of carbon monoxide (CO), and just under 1,000
tons of oxides of nitrogen (NOx) across the United States each year.
These emissions form smog and contain toxic compounds such as
benzene, so reducing them would benefit our health and environment. In
the Clean Air Act, Congress requires us to set emission standards that
address these problems. These environmental impacts are described in
more detail in the fact sheet referenced below.
Does my current off-highway motorcycle need to
meet these regulations?
No. Off-highway motorcycle manufacturers must ensure that each new
off-highway motorcycle sold meets the new emission standards. The
new standards apply only to new off-highway motorcycles produced in
2006 or later. Anything manufactured before that model year would not
be affected. We allow several years of lead time between publication of a
I Printed on Recycled Paper
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final rule and the effective date of new standards. New emission stan-
dards for off-highway motorcycles therefore won't affect the off-high-
way motorcycle you own now or any off-highway motorcycle you buy
before 2006.
Is
The Clean Air Act excludes from emissions control programs vehicles
used solely for competition. We recognize that organized off-highway
motorcycle competition is popular around the country. Provisions in the
final rule will allow manufacturers to make and sell competition motor-
cycles that do not meet emissions requirements, as long as these bikes
are dedicated competition models and not for general use. Also, riders
may modify off-highway motorcycles that are used solely for competi-
tion. In some cases manufacturers may choose to make competition
models that are certified to meet emission standards; see the fact sheet
referenced below for more infomation.
As an
You may not disable any emission controls installed on your off-high-
way motorcycle. Manufacturers explain in their owner's manual what
type of emission controls exist for each model. Manufacturers may also
specify some minor maintenance that must be performed to keep emis-
sion controls working properly over the life of the off-highway motor-
cycle.
of is
We are adopting standards that manufacturers will meet on an average
basis, which may encourage manufacturers to use a broader array of
technologies across their product line. We don't tell manufacturers how-
to comply with the regulations, but we anticipate many manufacturers
will choose to meet them by using four-stroke engines instead of two-
stroke engines. Some manufacturers may also slightly change the air-
fuel mixture. Others may decide to use a technology such as advanced
fuel injection or secondary air injection on some models.
We are also adopting requirements to control permeation emissions from
off-highway motorcycle fuel systems. We expect these requirements to
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lead to the use of improved materials that reduce the permeation of fuel
through fuel tanks and hoses and into the atmosphere. This should
noticeably reduce the smell of gasoline from your off-highway motor-
cycle.
will
The costs for new emission controls depends on the technology used,
manufacturing processes, the size of the manufacturer, and other issues.
Many off-highway motorcycle models are already equipped with four-
stroke engines and we estimate the cost for these models to be less than
$40. We estimate the cost to replace a two-stroke engine with a four-
stroke engine is about $200 to $400 depending on engine size. But, with
a four-stroke engine, these costs are somewhat offset by fuel savings,
since a four-stroke engine uses about 25 percent less fuel and less oil
than a two-stroke engine. The permeation requirements are expected to
cost less than $10 per vehicle, which is also offset by fuel savings.
will
safety?
We don't expect the controls to harm performance or safety. Manufactur-
ers have improved off-highway motorcycle designs over the last few
years, so four-stroke engines now perform as well as—and possibly
better than—two-stroke engines. Also, manufacturers will have several
years of lead-time to perfect designs. None of the emission controls
manufacturers are expected to use affect safety.
do
emit?
We estimated the amount of pollution coming from off-highway motor-
cycles based on testing of currently unregulated recreational vehicles.
Because there are both two-stroke and four-stroke engines currently used
in off-highway motorcycles and these engines have significantly differ-
ent emission characteristics, we estimated separate baseline emission
rates for each type of engine. Our estimates of baseline and future emis-
sion rates for off-highway motorcycles are shown in the following table.
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Engine Category
Baseline two-stroke
Baseline four- stroke
Off-highway
motorcycles meeting
EPA standards
Off-highway Motorcycle Emission Rates (grams per mile)*
HC
53.9
2.4
2.1
CO
54.1
48.5
30.6
NOx
0.2
0.4
0.3
PM
2.1
0.1
0.1
* Manufacturers meet standards based on emission rates in grams per kilome-
ter; emission estimates are presented here in grams per mile for convenience in
comparing with other programs.
I my off-
No. These regulations do not include any specific restrictions about
where you can ride certified off-highway motorcycles (or models built
before 2006). Some provisions apply to off-highway motorcycles that
don't meet emission standards because they are dedicated competition
models; see the fact sheet referenced below for more information about
how we treat competition products.
Do apply in
California already has emission standards for off-highway motorcycles.
Their program has been in place since 1997. Our regulations will not
affect the California program, although California may decide to adopt
our program in the future, especially since they do not have require-
ments for controlling permeation emissions.
Will
We are not adopting any new noise regulations. Most off-highway
motorcycle manufacturers design products that already meet EPA noise
standards.
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can I get
You can access documents on recreational vehicles on the Office of
Transportation and Air Quality Web site at:
www. epa.gov/otaq/recveh. htm
You can also contact us at:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Transportation and Air Quality
Assessment and Standards Division
2000 Traverwood Drive
Ann Arbor, MI 48105
Voice-mail: (734) 214-4636
E-mail: asdinfo@epa.gov
See additional fact sheets:
• Emission Standards for New Nonroad Engines— Large Industrial Spark-ignition
Engines, Recreational Marine Diesel Engines, and Recreational Vehicles
(EPA420-F-02-037)
* Environmental Impacts of Newly Regulated Nonroad Engines
(EPA420-F-02-033)
* Frequently Asked Questions: Emission Exemption for Racing Motorcycles and
Other Competition Vehicles (EPA420-F-02-045)
• How to Maintain or Rebuild Engines Certified to EPA Standards
(EPA420-F-02-035)
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