car news

Overview: This is what car brands emit on average (and they’ll soon get giga fines for it)

August 22, 2024

Millions in fines

Eager to make the car market more sustainable, the European Union has set the bar high: by 2025, new cars must not emit more than 93.6 grams of CO2 per kilometer on average.
If a brand fails to meet this average, it will cost 95 euros per gram of exceedance per car.
In other words, automakers risk millions in fines.
In order to avoid them, manufacturers must put a lot of effort into fuel-efficient hybrids, plug-in hybrids and, of course, sell as many electric cars as possible.

Excessive CO2 emissions

Not every car brand has enough models with low CO2 emissions to bring the average below the strict EU standard, Automotive News reports.
Despite their electric ambitions and EV models such as the Mustang Mach-E and the ID family, Ford and Volkswagen remain on average with relatively high CO2 emissions.
On the other hand, Tesla and Geely – the parent company of Volvo and Polestar – excel.
These, with offerings consisting mainly – and, of course, in Tesla’s case, entirely – of EVs, do not have to worry about CO2 emissions and possible fines.

Below is an overview of average CO2 emissions per car sold by brand (first half of 2024).
As you can see, few brands come close to the new standard of 93.6 g/km:

Previous fines

The EU has shown before that they are serious when it comes to CO2 emissions and its rules.
In 2021, the standard was set at an average emission of 116 grams of CO2 per kilometer for a car brand’s entire fleet.
For many manufacturers back then, this limit also proved difficult to meet. The result? A wave of fines added up to as much as 550 million euros.

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