In 2017, ADAC analysed 105 vehicles for fuel/energy efficiency and pollutant emissions in its EcoTest. Four electric vehicles and one plug-in hybrid achieved the five-star top rating. Another 17 cars, including two diesel vehicles (Mercedes E 220 d T-Model / no. 13; BMW 520d Steptronic / no. 20), garnered four stars. Cars with a four-star rating are also considered recommendable. The best four-star car was a CNG vehicle, the Audi A4 Avant g-tron S tronic.
“As the ADAC EcoTest shows, a number of vehicles are recommended for their environmental credentials. What counts now is to make cars as clean and efficient as possible, no matter what drive system they use. There is no alternative: any reduction in material, consumption and pollutants will benefit the environment and the consumer,” says ADAC Vice President Technical Services, Thomas Burkhardt.
The Hyundai IONIQ Electric was the best car in the ADAC EcoTest, followed by the e-Golf. While the group of plug-in hybrids tested was disappointing on the whole, the Toyota Prius 1.8 Plug-In Hybrid is an exception: as the only plug-in hybrid to achieve five ADAC EcoTest stars, it came in third. The Ignis (eighth place) was the cleanest petrol vehicle in the 2017 EcoTest. The least environment-friendly vehicles, by EcoTest standards, are big, heavy cars with four-wheel drive.
The ADAC emission testing is more realistic than that of manufacturers and governmental institutions. In addition to undergoing updated driving cycles and stricter rating criteria, cars with excellent test lab results achieving four or five eco stars are now also tested for real driving emissions.
See the top performers in the EcoTest:
