Most automakers are urging the European Union to drop the combustion engine ban planned for 2035. Car companies have legitimate reasons to push back, citing an underdeveloped charging infrastructure and higher EV prices. Additionally, there’s a serious risk that the automotive manufacturing industry would lose hundreds of thousands of jobs if all companies were forced to build only electric cars.
For a while, the EU seemed unwilling to budge. As recently as this past spring, the cut-off date was still in place. However, mounting pressure to change the legislation is finally working, as combustion engines will continue after the middle of the next decade. It appears a letter sent by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen persuaded the governing body to back away from the ban.
In an interview with German business newspaper Handelsblatt (subscription required), the Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism said the letter has been “very well received in Brussels.” Apostolos Tzitzikostas confirmed that combustion engines will continue past 2035, but only in cars running on low-emissions, renewable fuels such as synthetic and biofuels.
One relevant example is HVO100, made entirely from hydrotreated vegetable oil derived from vegetable oils and animal fats. BMW already fuels diesel cars made in Germany with HVO100, which is claimed to curb emissions by 90 percent compared to regular diesel.
Synthetic gasoline is also a possibility, and it too can theoretically lower emissions by 90 percent versus regular gas. For several years already, Porsche has been experimenting with eFuel. It has been making synthetic fuel at a plant in Chile since late 2022, using water and carbon dioxide processed with wind energy. At the site in South America, the eFuel is said to be “produced in a virtually carbon-neutral manner.”
The EU had planned to detail the planned measures on December 10, but the so-called “car package” has been pushed back to later this month. It remains to be seen whether plug-in hybrids will continue after 2035 and whether cars with range-extended engines will also be allowed. If they run on low-emission fuels, logic suggests these cars are likely to continue. The question is whether PHEVs and range-extenders running on fossil fuels will be banned or not.
Limiting ICE sales to new cars that run on less harmful fuels might not be enough to save the jobs mentioned earlier. It seems wildly unrealistic that the infrastructure needed to support synthetic and biofuels will be ready in just nine years. Whatever happens, the EU’s ruling impacts only sales of new cars, so you’ll still be allowed to put regular gasoline or diesel in the vehicle you already own.
Meanwhile, EVs are gaining traction across the 27 EU member states, as well as in the U.K., Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. Through the first ten months of the year, cars without combustion engines represented 18.3 percent of total sales, based on the most recent sales data released by the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA). Nevertheless, there’s still a long way to go until they surpass hybrids, which account for 34.7 percent. Plug-in hybrids have a 9.4 percent share through October, outselling diesels for the first time.
According to Apostolos Tzitzikostas, the EU wants to lay the groundwork for an “economically viable and socially fair” transition to climate-neutral drivetrains. It’s considering “all technological advancements” to curb emissions, including less-polluting combustion engines.
Although most automakers oppose the ban, a handful of companies insist the EU should stick to its original pledge to outlaw the sale of new cars with gas engines. Volvo and Polestar, both owned by China’s Geely, want the 2035 ban to remain in place.
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