General Motor Corp., an American automaker, plans to have an ambitious campaign to give its Chevrolet brand an environmental image. The company seeks to hold this plan to compete with the hybrid-master Toyota.

According to leading environmental activists at the Los Angeles Auto Show, the competition will be a tough sell. The idea has made Dan Becker, environmental consultant and longtime director of the Sierra Club’s global warming project, laugh. He said, “GM’s an environmental pariah”: They have zero credibility as an environmental leader.”

Mark LaNeve, GM vice president for sales, service and marketing, is well-versed that the company possesses a bad reputation on the environment. Thus, the new marketing campaign shall be the first step in a long-term attempt to alter the image.

LaNeve mentioned that GM will be focusing on fuel efficiency, alternative fuels, hybrids on vehicles sold now as well as the Volt extended-range electric vehicle expected to go on sale in 2010. The company will also have a fleet of 100 zero-emission hydrogen fuel-cell Chevrolet Equinox SUVs tested by consumers in 2008.

Acknowledging the fact that the attempt will take a breakthrough vehicle like the Volt to change Chevrolet’s image, LaNeve said, “We are going to offer solutions for our company, the consumer, America and the environment.”

Considering that the world’s largest automaker Toyota is the one that dominates the hybrid market with its popular Prius, GM realizes that they are in long-term project. But, they know the challenge can be even tougher.

Becker said, “Most of the campaign’s claims are bunk” knowing that the E85 ethanol-gasoline blend key to GM’s claims is unavailable in California, he said, “They don’t have any credibility on these issues.”

In the campaign, Chevrolet will be touted with “Gas-friendly to gas-free” slogan. Chevrolet general manager Ed Peper said, “It’s critical to our brand that providing fuel solutions be part of our image. This is certainly not business as usual. Chevrolet really is changing at its foundation of how we power America.”

Jim Kliesch, senior engineer in the Union of Concerned Scientists’ clean vehicles program, said that GM needs more than a nifty slogan to change its image with environmental groups. He said, “Evaluating an automaker’s environmental performance based on an ad campaign is like judging how well somebody sings based on what kind of shoes they wear.”

Kliesch has given credit to GM as the American automaker began selling hybrid full-size trucks, including a Chevrolet Silverado pickup, and its development efforts on the Volt and fuel cells. But, he said, the automaker is lacking efforts against high fuel-economy standards.

Kliesch said, “It’s important to support policies to reduce carbon dioxide and raise fuel efficiency. GM and other automakers are lobbying against these standards. That does not jibe with the message they’re trying to send.”

Despite the criticism, GM is eager to pursue the campaign. LaNeve said that Chevrolet will be a leading environmental brand and “We want to be seen as the solution, not part of the problem.”

So from now on, Chevrolet vehicles are expected to be sustained with not just quality Chevy floor mats, but features that will provide benefits for the environment.

Most emission testing centers today check four pollutants: carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrocarbons (HC), nitrogen oxide (NOX) and the “evaporative emissions”.

Do you have an old car like a Plymouth Voyager? You are probably concerned with what is emits since your Plymouth exhaust is already quite old and it might emit undesirable colored gasses.

You need to know these emitted dangerous gases to eventually know the right way of maintaining your old exhaust system like the Plymouth exhaust system and avoiding these gases at the same time.

Carbon monoxide is the deadliest among pollutants. You cannot see it nor smell it. A concentration of only half a percent (0.5%) CO in the air can make a person unconscious and kill within 10 to 15 minutes. Even very small amount of concentrations as four hundredths of a percent (0.04%) can cause headaches and be life threatening after several hours of exposure.

Never run an engine inside an enclosed garage. Since this is a gas, it diffuses very fast that you cannot even count the seconds of its diffusion. If engine is run inside an enclosed area, chances are 75 percent of carbon dioxide particles are stocked in that area; so you can easily inhale it. Remember that this gas is invisible and odorless. You cannot really tell when it is around.

It is formed when the fuel mixture is rich and there is insufficient oxygen to completely burn all the fuel. Carbon monoxide and fuel mixture has a direct proportionality, which means the richer the fuel mixture, the greater the quantity of CO produced. So high CO emissions indicate incomplete combustion typically caused by several maladjustments.

When the engine is first started, carbon monoxide production is highest because the fuel mixture is richer than normal during this time and the catalytic converter has not yet reached operating temperature. It is therefore the time when it is most dangerous.

Despite these thrilling facts, emission of carbon monoxide can be minimized. By maintaining a balanced to slightly lean fuel mixture, CO is reduced. This just requires careful adjustments on the carburetor idle mixture screws.

Hydrocarbon emissions are unburned gasoline and oil vapors. Though not directly harmful, they are a major contributor to smog and ozone pollution (which are toxic). Hydrocarbons in the atmosphere react with sunlight and break down to form other chemical compounds that irritate the eyes, nasal passages, throat and lungs.

HC emissions, which are usually measured in parts per million (PPM), can go up as a result of a fouled plug or bad plug wire, incorrect carburetor idle adjustment or vacuum leaks that creates a lean mixture that misfires, loss of compression such as a burned or leaky exhaust valve, or engine wear that causes the engine to burn oil Engine wear include the wearing of valve guides, rings and/or cylinders.

Hydrocarbon emissions are controlled in three different ways. One is by maintaining the fuel mixture so it is neither too lean nor too rich to ignite. The second one is by keeping the combustion chamber tightly sealed, and lastly by maintaining the ignition system or changing the plugs periodically. HC that is produced in the engine is burned again in the catalytic converter and changed into water vapor and carbon dioxide.

Nitrogen comprises the most percentage of the air we breathe; about 78 percent. Though normally inert and not directly involved in the combustion process, combustion temperatures above 2500 degrees F cause nitrogen and oxygen to combine and form various compounds called “nitrogen oxide”. This mostly occurs when the engine is under load and the throttle is open wide.

Nitrogen oxide can cause irritations in the eye, nose and lungs, headaches and irritability. Higher concentrations can cause bronchitis and they oftentimes aggravate other lung disorders leading to death. Once released in the atmosphere, it reacts with oxygen to form ozone (which is also toxic to breathe) and smog.

Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) is used to reduce the formation of NOX. By circulating again a small amount of exhaust gas back into the intake manifold to dilute the air/fuel mixture, EGR has a “cooling” effect on combustion. This, in turn, puts temperatures below the NOX formation threshold.

High NOX emissions are often times due to a defective EGR valve or some component that controls the operation of the EGR valve. A related sign that usually occurs when EGR is lost is spark knock or detonation while accelerating.

Last of the four pollutants, but still dangerous, are the “evaporative emissions” (EM). EM control system that captures and holds vapors from your fuel tank. The fuel vapors that evaporate from your fuel tank can be another source of smog and ozone pollution. To avoid vapor loss, car manufacturers seal fuel systems for the past twenty years.

The amount of pollution adds up, especially during hot weather, so it is important to make sure the system is functioning properly.