🔗 Share this article

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles produce nearly five times greater planet-heating pollution than official data show, as per a recent analysis.

Widening Gap Between Lab and Actual CO2 Output

Statistics reveals that PHEVs release just one-fifth less CO₂ than conventional gas and diesel vehicles, based on analysis conducted by a advocacy group. This contrasts sharply with lab tests, which suggested a 75% reduction in pollution.

Analysts studied information from in-vehicle fuel consumption monitors of eight hundred thousand vehicles registered in Europe from 2021 and 2023. The team discovered that actual CO₂ output from PHEVs in 2023 were 4.9 times greater than lab estimates, increased from three and a half times in 2021.

“Real-world CO2 output are rising, while lab-reported figures are decreasing,” stated a lead researcher involved in the report. “That discrepancy is widening and poses a significant problem. Consequently, PHEVs emit almost as much as petrol cars.”

Key Reasons Driving the Emissions Gap

Analysts attributed the majority of the gap to overestimates of the “utility factor” – the percentage of kilometers travelled in battery power relative to overall distance. They determined that only a quarter of travel was completed in electric mode, while lab assumptions assumed 84%.

Additionally, when running in EV mode, pollution levels were significantly higher than lab estimates. That occurred because EV motors were not strong enough to function alone, resulting to engines burning gasoline for nearly one-third of the distance covered in EV mode.

Regulatory and Financial Implications

According to estimates, the lowballing of PHEV emissions enabled several large carmaker groups to escape over €5bn in fines between 2021 and 2023, by falsely simplifying compliance with EU fleet-average CO₂ standards.

Additionally, drivers of PHEVs would spend approximately €500 extra per year in operating expenses than would be assumed under laboratory tests.

“The strong claims that automakers like to make about their PHEV cars are clearly way off the mark,” commented a automotive analyst. “Consumers are being duped into thinking that by buying a PHEV, they are helping the environment and cutting costs. In reality, PHEVs are only slightly improved than standard gas and diesel cars in terms of fuel consumption, CO₂ emissions, and running expenses.”

Political Discussion and Industry Lobbying

Plug-in hybrid cars have recently been brought again into policy debates as carmakers have lobbied the EU to weaken CO₂ targets. A proposed ban on sales of new internal combustion vehicles in 2035 has faced heavy lobbying from the car industry and opposition from EU countries with large car industries.

Several high-level politicians have proposed PHEVs as a possible “flexibility” solution to include in the regulation.

One external energy policy expert, who was unaffiliated with the study, called the analysis a “very useful contribution” after a long period in which segments of the car industry claimed there was too little data to accurately evaluate actual CO2 output.

“The results demonstrate, beyond any doubt, that the gap in official and real-world PHEV fuel consumption and CO₂ output is much, much greater than for petrol or diesel vehicles,” they said. “All policy adjustments regarding PHEVs should be implemented with extreme caution and in the light of that data.”