2024-01-27 12:02:08
While European car manufacturers are required to reduce the CO2 emissions of their new thermal vehicles, a recent report from the Court of Auditors reveals that the situation would be almost similar to what it was 12 years ago.
Indeed, in its audit report carried out between 2020 and 2022, the Court of Auditors looked at CO2 emissions from automobile sales in the EU. In this study, the aim was to determine whether European Union member states actually verify car manufacturers’ data. As a reminder, since 2010, those who exceed their CO2 emissions quotas on new vehicles have been subject to a fine.
But according to the report from the Court of Auditors, CO2 emissions have absolutely not decreased. “ Emissions in real conditions from thermal vehicles – which still represent almost three-quarters of new registrations – have not really fallen. Over the last decade, they have remained stable for diesel cars and have only decreased very slightly (–4.6%) for gasoline cars. Progress made in engine efficiency is offset by increases in vehicle mass (around +10% on average) and engine power (+25% on average) », details the audit report.
THE States never check the values transmitted by thermal vehicle manufacturers?
Vehicle weights would represent a real problem. Being increasingly important, CO2 emissions are, therefore, evolving, despite the efforts of engineers. To reduce fuel consumption, they each time make improvements to the engines (lubrication, variable timings, various combustion cycles, etc.). Furthermore, the audit report scrutinized the conformity tests carried out by car manufacturers in certain Member States, notably Germany, the Netherlands and Italy. The observation is clear: these States almost never check the values transmitted by the manufacturers of their thermal vehicles.
« The type approval authorities in two of the three Member States visited did not carry out the required checks on manufacturers. This lack of control limits the assurance that the CO2 emissions of vehicles declared by manufacturers on the certificates of conformity are accurate. The Commission has little information on the implementation of these controls by national authorities, given that as of mid-2023 it itself had not carried out any assessment of the application of the new rules », Explain the investigators.
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