Australia: Heavy-Duty Engines
Background
The first emission regulation for heavy-duty vehicles was a smoke emissions requirement introduced in 1976 for vehicles with a diesel engine. The first emission standards—apart from smoke standards—for heavy-duty diesel vehicles became effective in 1995/1996 (new/all models). These emission standards were introduced via ADR70/00 adopting Euro I regulations with US and Japanese standards as alternatives.
Since 2002/2003, emissions from heavy-duty engines and vehicles are regulated under ADR80, which has been revised on several occasions:
- ADR80/00—Euro III emission standards effective from 2002/2003 (new/all models) [5946].
- ADR80/02—Euro IV emission standards effective from 2007/2008 [5945].
- ADR80/03—Euro V emission standards effective from 2010/2011 [5944].
- ADR80/04—Euro VI emission standards effective from 2024/2025 [5943].
Applicability. The standards are applicable to vehicles with a gross vehicle mass (GVM) above 3.5 tonnes, including medium and heavy goods vehicles (category NB, NC), buses (MD, ME), and passenger vehicles (MA, MB, MC).
Emission Standards
Australian heavy-duty emission regulations are based on EU standards. Vehicles meeting equivalent US or Japanese standards are also accepted. The ADRs apply to new vehicles fueled with diesel, petrol, as well as with natural gas or LPG. The requirements and the implementation schedules are summarized in Table 1.
| ADR Standard | Emission Stage | Vehicle Typea | Date | Source Standard | Alternative Standardsb | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Models | All Models | |||||
| ADR70/00 | Euro I | Diesel | 1995.01 | 1996.01 | UN ECE 49/02 | US91 or JP94 |
| ADR80/00 [5946] | Euro III | Diesel | 2002.01 | 2003.01 | EU 1999/96/EC | US98c |
| Petrol | 2003.01 | 2004.01 | US96 | US96 | ||
| ADR80/02 [5945] | Euro IV | Diesel | 2007.01 | 2008.03 | EU 2005/55/EC, 2005/78/EC & 2006/51/EC | US04 or JP05 |
| Petrol | 2007.01 | 2008.03 | UN ECE 83/05 A(2000)d | US98 | ||
| ADR80/03 [5944] | Euro V | Diesel | 2010.01 | 2011.01 | EU 2005/55/EC, 2005/78/EC & 2006/51/EC | US07 or JP05 |
| Petrol | 2010.01 | 2011.01 | UN ECE 83/05 B(2005)d | US08 | ||
| ADR80/04 [5943] | Euro VI Stage C | All | 2024.11 | 2025.11 | UN ECE 49/06 | EU 595/2009 & 582/2011 or US13 or JP17 |
|
a The same source standards and dates apply to diesel, NG and LPG vehicles. b Additional alternative standards may be listed in the ADR. c US EPA model year 2000 or later certificate or equivalent testing required (to ensure that no emission “defeat devices” are used). d In UN ECE 83/05 [5947], A(2000) defines Euro 3 and B(2005) Euro 4 level limits for vehicles with a reference mass less than 1760 kg. | ||||||
Other Provisions
OBD
ADR80/02 (Euro IV) requires heavy-duty vehicles to have OBD systems meeting Euro IV or Japanese requirements to warn against “functional failures”—such as an empty urea tank in engines with SCR.
ADR80/03 (Euro V) requires vehicles to have OBD systems meeting the Euro V requirements to directly monitor emission levels against set OBD thresholds.
Smoke Limits
ADR30/00 (1976) introduced smoke limits for vehicles with 4 or more wheels powered by a diesel engine. Alternative smoke standards included US EPA 74 and British Standard 141a:1971.
A revised smoke standard ADR30/01 [5942] applies to all categories of diesel vehicles from 2002/3. The smoke standard adopts UN ECE regulation R24/03 and allows US 98 smoke standards as an alternative. The standard is not applicable to vehicles that comply with ADR80/03 (Euro V) or later.
Diesel Fuel
The ADR80 emission requirements were synchronized with diesel fuel specifications of reduced sulfur content, as follows:
- 500 ppm sulfur effective 31 December 2002
- 50 ppm sulfur effective 1 January 2006
- 10 ppm sulfur effective 1 January 2009