He European Parliament He has set a date for a death that has been announced for some time now: that of combustion engines. Manufacturers will be prohibited from selling (and here is the key) diesel or gasoline cars from 2035, in a desperate search to stop global warming and minimize the consequences of climate change as far as possible.
Although its specific impact has yet to be studied in environmental terms, given that the automobile industry is not the most polluting in absolute terms, owners of a non-electric car have a clear question: Will I be able to drive my gasoline or diesel car when this ban comes into effect?
The answer is yes. The ban, approved by 340 votes in favor, 279 against and 21 abstentions, only affects the sale of new passenger cars and light commercial vehicles that are to be sold after 2035. From then on, all new cars and vans must be neutral in CO2 emissions: they must be electric, hydrogen or new generation fuels.
Those purchased previously, whether gasoline or diesel, may continue to circulate, although the foreseeable restrictive measures for them will significantly limit their possibilities.
The schedule to adapt
The break in the automobile market with classic combustion engines will not be sudden. Starting in 2025, the car park will gradually be adapted so that, progressively, the most polluting cars are replaced by theoretically efficient ones.
The emission reduction targets will be reviewed periodically, with a first intermediate step in 2030. By that date, a new methodology to be decided by the Commission for assessing and reporting data on CO2 emissions over the entire life cycle of passenger cars and vans sold on the EU market will already be in place for five years. IF everything goes as planned, by 2030 they will already have been reduced by 55% emissions from passenger cars and 50% from vans.
To this end, a series of adaptable community incentive and aid programs will be adapted with the objective that buyers can change their vehicles with combustion engines for those with low emissions or zero emissions. so, of 2025 a 2029 they foresee that 25% of cars and 17% of new vans They will be low emissions. We will have to be very vigilant, since from 2030 this incentive will be eliminated… which in turn will force manufacturers to make their own decisions.
All this with a challenge for the future: that in 2050 the automotive industry is neutral in carbon emissions.
Brands begin to electrify
There are already numerous brands that have established their roadmap. Audi (and therefore, its sister brands such as Volkswagen or Porsche) will only launch new electric models from 2026although it will continue to manufacture gasoline or diesel until 2033 but much more efficient.
Ford it will take a few more years, until 2030, while Opel wants that from 2024 all its models have, at least, an electric version until its entire catalog is so in 2028. Also the rest of the stellantis group (Peugeot, Citroen, in addition to Opel itself) will take measures in this regard, to the point that its factory in Trémery (France) that currently makes its diesel engines will be the one to make the electric ones. The year in which the change will be completed for them will be 2025.