Everything is going "green" these days. But did you ever think that the air conditioner in your car would ever go green?
For years, people have complained that a car’s air conditioning system is horrible for the environment. At one time, the system used an ozone-depleting product. Later, manufacturers replaced it with something safer. Now, automakers are looking for even better ways to make you cool in your car when you’re driving on the highways.
The latest creation was presented by DuPont and Honeywell. It’s a chemical refrigerant called HFO-1234yf. While it seems more sustainable in the short run, analysts are uncertain about its future because it could be toxic. Analysts are also concerned about how the new chemical is going to decompose in the atmosphere. The biggest concern, however, is that the new refrigerant is flammable. That means a front-end collision could lead to a fire in the vehicle’s cabin if it has HFO-1234yf refrigerant in the A/C system.
Many chemical companies are asking automakers to put this new substance in their new vehicles, though. They say the current substances are too detrimental to the environment. So my question is this: Since when does the detriment to the ozone layer take precedence over an actual human being’s safety? If the new substance causes fires in accidents, how is that better than the current situation?
It could be a couple years before automakers start using this new refrigerant if they even start using it at all. That’s why you should get to your local Pontiac dealer today and get a new or used vehicle with the safer, less flammable refrigerant used in the air conditioning system. After all, if global warming is actually true, you’ll need a way to stay cool when temperatures get unbearable.
