Frequently Asked Questions from
Owners and Operators of Nonroad
Engines, Vehicles, and Equipment
Certified to EPA Standards
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has adopted
emission standards for nearly all types of nonroad engines, vehicles,
and equipment. This page describes how EPA emission standards affect
individual owners and operators of these products.
Why does EPA adopt emission standards for nonroad engines, vehicles, and
equipment?
Nonroad engines contribute significantly to air pollution. The emission standards
address emissions of oxides of nitrogen (NOx), hydrocarbons (HC), particulate
matter (PM), and carbon monoxide (CO). These emissions help form smog and
include toxic compounds such as benzene, so reducing them will benefit our health
and environment. In the Clean Air Act, Congress requires us to set emission stan-
dards that address these problems.
Does my current nonroad engine, vehicle, or equipment need to meet these
regulations?
Manufacturers must ensure that each new engine, vehicle, or equipment meets the
latest emission standards. Once manufacturers sell you a certified product, no further
effort is required to complete certification. If products were built before EPA emission
standards started to apply, they are generally not affected by the standards or other
regulatory requirements. See Table 1 for a listing of when EPA emission standards
started to apply. We never require owners to retire their old engines, vehicles, or
equipment.
SEPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Transportation and Air Quality
EPA-420-F-12-053
August 2012
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What requirements apply to owners and operators of certified products?
One of the most important part of the regulations that applies to you is the tampering prohi-
bition—you may not disable any emission controls installed on certified engines, vehicles, or
equipment. This would apply for removing emission control devices, adding or modifying hard-
ware or software that increases emissions (of any pollutant), reprogramming onboard computers,
or operating engines without any needed supplies such as Diesel Exhaust Fluid. Manufacturers
explain in their owner's manual what type of emission controls exist for each model; they may
also specify some minor maintenance that must be done to keep emission controls working
properly. For restrictions and recordkeeping requirements that apply for rebuilding engines and
performing maintenance on certified products, see "How to Maintain or Rebuild Engines Certified
to EPA Standards," EPA-420-F-12-052 (available at www.epa.gov/nonroad/).
Similarly, EPA regulations prohibit defeat devices—you may not make, sell, or install any part
that bypasses, impairs, defeats, or disables the control of emissions of any regulated pollutant.
Since manufacturers have the primary responsibility to meet emission standards for their products,
you generally have no requirements to achieve a certain level of emission control or to re-certify.
However, you must meet additional requirements in two special circumstances:
• You may need to use certified kits or systems when remanufacturing locomotive engines
or marine diesel engines,
• In the case of Marine SI engines (40 CFR part 1045), Recreational vehicles (40 CFR
part 1051), and Small SI engines (40 CFR part 1054), you must re-certify if you up-
grade your engine to operate on a different fuel. For fuel conversions with other types of
nonroad engines, vehicles, or equipment, you may need to do testing to show that the
conversion is not considered tampering, but you do not need to re-certify.
What kind of emission controls does EPA require?
We don't tell manufacturers what emission controls to use to comply with the regulations, but
we rely on testing information from engines equipped with specific technologies to establish the
emission standards. Manufacturers may use these anticipated technologies, or they may find
better ways to meet emission standards.
Manufacturers of diesel engines have typically met the standards with more careful control of
intake air and fuel injection, with some exhaust gas recirculation. Long-term standards for many
of these engines will generally involve additional use of aftertreatment devices such as diesel
particulate filters (DPF) and selective catalytic reduction (SCR),
-~ Most Large SI engines and many Marine SI engines use automotive -type technologies, including
closed-loop fuel injection and three-way catalytic converters. For other engines, manufacturers
will optimize air-fuel mixtures and make other internal engine changes. We expect continued
use of two-stroke engines in the following cases: (1) outboard and personal watercraft marine
engines may use direct-injection two-stroke engine technology, which avoids the most prob-
lematic aspects of two-stroke combustion; (2) to maintain lightweight performance, Handheld
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Small SI engines will typically continue to use two-stroke engines, though these engines will
generally have catalysts to reduce the amount of unburned fuel from escaping through the
exhaust as hydrocarbon emissions; and (3) some two-stroke snowmobile engines will likely con-
tinue to be available, depending on ongoing efforts to improve the performance characteristics
of four'Stroke snowmobile engines.
For gasoline-fueled products, we have also adopted requirements to control permeation emis-
sions from fuel systems. We expect these requirements to lead to the use of improved materials
to prevent fuel from escaping through fuel tanks and hoses into the atmosphere. This should
noticeably reduce the smell of gasoline around these vehicles and equipment.
How will these controls affect performance and safety?
As part of the rulemaking process, we evaluate potential safety issues related to new standards
to make sure not to adopt emission standards that would cause manufacturers to use emission
controls that add new risks to operating vehicles or equipment. As always, it is important to
take proper precautions when using engine-powered vehicles or equipment.
Meeting emission standards adds to the engine designer's challenge. This might lead to some
trade-offs with respect to power or efficiency; however, there are many examples of design engi-
neers coming up with ways to add emission controls in a way that significantly improves engine
power and efficiency while reducing emissions. Over time, engineers will work to improve
designs to reduce or eliminate any remaining trade-offs,
Do EPA regulations affect where I can use my nonroad vehicle or equipment?
No. These regulations do not include any specific restrictions about where you can use your
nonroad vehicle or equipment. They address only the permissible emission rates from new,
certified products.
State and local governments have limited authority to set emission standards for new products;
however, they may adopt regulations that restrict the use and operation of most products that
are no longer new. EPA generally has no involvement with such restrictions.
Do EPA regulations apply in California?
California has adopted its own emission standards for certain types of new nonroad engines,
vehicles, or equipment. In those cases, manufacturers must certify their products with the
California Air Resources Board; these products are also certified with EPA even though no
additional requirements apply,
EPA's prohibitions against tampering and defeat devices apply to certified products throughout
J the United States, including products that are certified to meet emission standards that apply
uniquely in California,
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For More Information
You can access documents related to emission standards for nonroad engines, vehicles, and
equipment on EPA's Office of Transportation and Air Quality (OTAQ) web site at:
www.epa.gov/nonroad
You can also contact the OTAQ library for document information at:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Transportation and Air Quality Library
2000 Traverwood Drive
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105
(734) 214-4311& 214-4434
Email: Group_AALibrary@epa.gov
Table 1
Schedule for Application of New Emission Standards for Certifying Engines and Vehicles
o
Engine category
A. Heavy-duty highway engines
B. Locomotives or locomotive
engines
C. Marine compression-ignition
engines at or above 37 kW
D. Other nonroad compression-
ignition engines.
E. Marine spark-ignition engines.
F. Recreational spark-ignition
engines and vehicles
G. Other nonroad spark-ignition
engines at or below 1 9 kW
H. Other nonroad spark-ignition
engines above 19 kW
Engine subcategory
—
—
Commercial: displacement < 0.9 L/cyl
Commercial: 0. 9 £ displacement < 2.5 L/cyl
Commercial: displacement > 2.5 L/cyl
Recreational: displacement < 0.9 L/cyl
Recreational: 0.9 < displacement < 2.5 L/cyl
Recreational: 2.5 < displacement < 5.0 L/cyl
Marine compression-ignition engines: Power < 19 kW
Marine compression-ignition engines: 19 kW < Power < 37
Nonroad engines: Power < 19 kW
Nonroad engines: 19 kW< Power < 37
Nonroad engines: 37 kW< Power < 75
Nonroad engines: 75 kW< Power < 130
Nonroad engines: 130 kW < Power < 560
Nonroad engines: Power > 560 kW
Outboard
Personal watercraft
Sterndrive/inboard
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—
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Manufacturing date
after which emission
standards start to apply
Model year 1970
January 1, 1973
Model year 2005
Model year 2004
Model year 2007
Model year 2007
Model year 2006
Model year 2009
January 1, 2000
January 1, 1999
January 1, 2000
January 1, 1999
January 1, 1998
January 1, 1997
January 1, 1996
January 1, 2000
Model year 1998
Model year 1999
Model Year 2010
Model year 2006
Model year 1997
Model year 2004
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