The United States had a record 210 million automobiles on the road in 1999, up 15 million from 1994, and the total for all of North America in 1996 was more than 235 million. Each year, some 12 million of these vehicles are retired from useful life. Many of the materials used in their production create problems along the way, either in the vehicleÕs manufacture, use or end-of-life. This report examines the historic and continuing use of the highly toxic metal mercury in automobiles and estimates its releases to the environment from end-of-life vehicle (ELV) processing. The report will show that emissions from vehicle recycling and disposal processes are one of the largest sources of mercury contamination to the environment. The report also examines strategies for cleaner production and proposes key policy solutions to eliminate mercury hazards from both new and existing vehicles.