The deadline set by Europe to end the sale of gasoline vehicles in 2035 is approaching. We could fear resistance from car manufacturers, but this is not the case.
It is good to say that electric cars have less impact on the environment than their thermal equivalents, this is not enough to encourage people to equip themselves with a “clean” vehicle. There are therefore numerous incentive measures such as social leasing to help with purchasing, so effective that it will have to take a break during 2024. But it is surely the ban on selling cars and vans to gasoline from 2035 in Europe which will obviously be the most attractive.
The decision is radical and has not failed to provoke more or less strong reactions, particularly in Germany. This forced Europe to qualify its copy, without going back on its final objective. We could also fear reluctance on the part of automobile manufacturers, and in fact some are calling for the deadline to be delayed. Finally, it seems that European industrialists no longer intend to oppose it.
European car manufacturers will not seek to postpone the end of thermal cars
Luca de Meo, CEO of Renault and president of theAssociation of European Automobile Manufacturers (ACEA) explains that the responsibility of industrialists in the sector “is not to oppose regulation. We do not contest the 2035 horizon. We must now get started“. There are about 11 years until the deadline, but the man is optimistic. According to him, put an end to thermal cars by then “is potentially achievable, but the right conditions must be put in place“.
These conditions include, among other things, the payment of government subsidies or the installation of charging stations and terminals across all territories. De Meo also recalls that the sector has invested billions of euros in the electrification of the vehicle fleet and that reversing the European Union’s decision would simply mean wasting the money spent. “Industry [automobile] cannot under any circumstances return to the box departure,” he asserts, before concluding with the evidence that is constantly hammered home: “it’s bad for the environment“.
Source: Automotive News Europe