🔗 Share this article

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles produce nearly 5x more global warming pollution than official figures indicate, as per a recent report.

Widening Gap Between Lab and Actual Emissions

Statistics shows that PHEVs emit only one-fifth lower CO₂ than traditional gas and diesel cars, based on research conducted by a advocacy group. That differs significantly with lab tests, which assumed a three-quarters reduction in emissions.

Analysts studied data from in-vehicle fuel consumption meters of eight hundred thousand cars registered in Europe between 2021 and 2023. They found that actual CO₂ emissions from PHEVs in 2023 were nearly five times higher than official estimates, up from three and a half times in 2021.

“Real-world CO2 output are increasing, while lab-reported emissions are decreasing,” stated a lead researcher participating in the study. “That discrepancy is widening and poses a significant issue. Consequently, PHEVs pollute almost as much as petrol cars.”

Primary Factors Behind the Emissions Gap

Researchers attributed the majority of the difference to inflated estimates of the “utility factor” – the percentage of miles driven in electric mode relative to overall distance. They found that only 27% of travel was completed in electric mode, whereas official estimates assumed 84%.

Additionally, when running in EV mode, emission amounts were significantly higher than official projections. This happened because EV motors were insufficiently powerful sufficient to operate independently, resulting to combustion motors using gasoline for nearly a third of the distance covered in EV mode.

Regulatory and Financial Implications

According to calculations, the lowballing of PHEV CO2 output allowed several major carmaker groups to escape more than €5bn in penalties from 2021 and 2023, by falsely simplifying compliance with EU fleet-average CO₂ standards.

Additionally, owners of PHEVs could pay approximately €500 extra annually in operating expenses than would be assumed under laboratory conditions.

“The strong claims that automakers like to make about their plug-in hybrid cars are clearly far from the mark,” stated a automotive analyst. “Buyers are being duped into believing that by buying a PHEV, they are benefiting the environment and saving money. In reality, PHEVs are little better than standard petrol and diesel cars in terms of fuel consumption, CO₂ emissions, and running expenses.”

Political Debate and Industry Lobbying

Plug-in hybrid vehicles have recently been drawn back into policy discussions as carmakers have pressed the European Union to relax CO₂ standards. A planned prohibition on sales of new internal combustion vehicles in 2035 has faced intense pressure from the automotive industry and opposition from EU countries with significant automotive industries.

Several high-level officials have proposed PHEVs as a potential “flexibility” option to introduce in the regulation.

One external energy economics expert, who was not involved with the study, called the analysis a “very useful addition” after years in which parts of the automotive sector claimed there was insufficient information to accurately evaluate actual CO2 output.

“The results show, without question, that the gap in official and actual PHEV fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions is significantly greater than for gasoline or conventional vehicles,” they said. “All regulatory adjustments concerning PHEVs should be implemented with utmost caution and considering this data.”