The effects of reducing the tar and nicotine concentration of cigarette smoke were examined in a rat model of smoke‐augmented, porcine pancreatic elastase‐ (PPE‐) induced, pulmonary emphysema. Sixty‐eight female Long‐Evans rats were divided approximately evenly into seven groups: control, PPE, PPE plus sham smoke, high‐tar/ nicotine cigarette smoke (2R1; 38.8 mg total particulate matter and 2.2 mg nicotine per cigarette), low‐tar/nicotine cigarette smoke (1R4F; 10.8 mg total particulate matter and 0.8 mg nicotine per cigarette), PPE + 2R1, and PPE + 1R4F. Three days after intra‐tracheal administration of PPE (400 IU/kg), animals in the smoke‐treated groups were exposed to 8–10 puffs of cigarette smoke daily, 7 d/wk for 12 wk. Sham‐treated animals received room air in place of cigarette smoke. At the conclusion of the exposures, pulmonary function tests were performed under general anesthesia. Cigarette‐smoke exposure alone did not produce significant changes in pulmonary function. Elastase‐treated groups demonstrated significant increases in total lung capacity, functional residual capacity, and dynamic and static compliance, as well as significant decreases in carbon monoxide (CO) diffusing capacity and CO diffusion coefficient. Morphometric measurements of mean linear intercept demonstrated a loss of alveolar fine structure with enlargement of distal airspaces in PPE‐treated rats. Exposure to either 2R1 or 1R4F cigarette smoke significantly enhanced many of the emphysematous changes produced by PPE, but there were no significant differences between the effects of the two smokes. These data indicate that reducing the tar and nicotine concentration of cigarette smoke does not lessen its ability to augment PPE‐induced pulmonary emphysema in the rat.