EU to Compromise on Auto Emissions - Impact on EVs, Hybrids?

If Prius did represent an average car, this limits could be reached back in 2009...

Easy!

 

The easiest way to meet goals is to have easy tests

Euro 6 is actually a fair test, and it was impossible to really meet the new car co2 standards and hit euro 6 without killing the auto industry, which other than the german car companies is a basket case. Its likely a wise choice to keep euro 6 and shelve the unrealistic goals. Really if you kill car sales, you simply keep the older more polluting cars on the road, you do not reduce oil consumption or stop global warming or any such goals.

 

EU has somewhat conflict of interest. They tax the "dickens" on gasoline/diesel so there is some need to keep using those fuels to collect the taxes. I think Grumpy Cabbie pointed out that the under taxation effect of elec vs. gaso could weaken EU's government push for EV's. On the other hand, hybrids like Prius would seem to fit nicely into the EU carbon plan: not too much, not too little.

Also, the EU is evidently looking at CO2 emissions which is not so great for EV on the grid. Do we know if EU is using US EPA MPGe methodology for EV's? Our EPA MPGe formula gives extra credit to EV's - for example, Prius gets 50 MPG vs. 100 MPGe for EV making about the same amount of CO2 on a national average grid basis.

This brings up another question though: How does CAFE MPGe compare to CAFE MPG? In other words, on CAFE MPG scale Prius gets like 75 MPG ...does the 100 MPGe of a EV also get increased to like 150 ?

 

In the US we buy less than 5% hybrids and plug ins. The EU-27 buys a tiny amount compared to the US. Really what the new law would have done is make the European auto companies even weaker. Say by miricle you could get 2% in europe plug-ins and hybrids, that wouldn't even save 2% of the oil.

european governments tax everything, I don't think they would really be much better off if there were 40% fewer vehicle sales, but the new vehicles were 5% more efficient. It just would keep the old polluting diesels on the road longer.

 

^^^ thank you pls see my updated post (more questions)

 

Was it to do with emission standards or fuel economy standards?

Most cars now meet Euro 5 or 6 and many exceed them. Cars sold in World markets usually comply with the strictest emission levels. A UK Jag will comply with the US requirements as would a Merc, whereas a French Peugeot will probably just scrape through the test.

The average fuel economy standards were disliked by BMW, Mercedes and Porsche because most of their cars are gas guzzlers (compared to the US). Some of the small BMW's are very economical but they still want to sell a 6.0 litre V8 and thus object to the legislation. Manufacturers like Toyota, Fiat or Citroen who have invested more time in economical cars already comply! You also had the situation where Aston Martin introduced the Cygnet Toyota iQ - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia just to bring their average down. They sold thousands of V8's and a handful of the Cygnets, yet ticked all the boxes as far as the EU is concerned.

I probably agree with the watering down of this legislation. You can go too far and I think we're there now. Our average mpg's are significantly lower than the US. Manufacturers like Toyota have stopped importing some models and just concentrated on small, economical cars to comply. You might think that's fine, but what if you want an 8 seater car like the Toyota Estima? No can do, not even the hybrid version is economical enough and thus the car isn't sold. You have a large family or want to carry passengers (a taxi perhaps), then you can't or you cram 7 people into a Prius+/V. What if you want to tow a trailer, horse or boat? You get a small SUV with a 2.0 engine! Crazy.

In the UK we've also cut CO2 emissions by significant quantities and the cost is massively increased electric costs. What's the point of reducing our emissions by 25% and making it very hard for me to heat and light my home when the UK only accounts for 1% of global emissions anyway? Same with economical cars. Why insist I drive a small and slow car that I can't fit my family in, yet the factory down the road is working 24 hour shifts to sell 5 litre V8 Range Rovers to Russia, China and India who don't give a damn about fuel economy or emissions?

And then I could bore you all about factories shutting down here because of the emission legislation and opening up in a non EU country where they can pollute to their hearts content.

 

Agree, alse Austingreen had a good perspective:
New emissions limit where there is a forgiving NEDC test? That's very easy...
USA will try to do that with EPA tests...