PHEVs Emit 6x More Pollution Than Tests Claim, Study Finds — SkimNews
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- Transport & Environment analyzed data from 220,000 European PHEVs and found real-world emissions rose 5% — from 138 gCO2/km in 2023 to 145 gCO2/km in 2024 — the opposite of the direction government tests indicated.
- PHEV real-world emissions of 145 gCO2/km now sit only 14% below the average fossil-fueled vehicle, meaning the 'transitional' technology is barely cleaner than a conventional gas car in practice.
- EU 'utility factor' estimates assume regular plug-in charging that rarely happens; even when PHEVs operate in electric mode, they consume roughly 3x more gasoline than laboratory tests claim.
- Automakers have lobbied the EU to weaken planned updates to utility factors, which T&E says preserves 'unearned green credit' for selling ICE cars with a small battery and plug attached.
- Lucien Mathieu of T&E called PHEVs 'one of the auto industry's greatest greenwashing stunts,' warning that utility-factor delays also hold back Europe's ability to compete with rapidly advancing Chinese EV makers gaining share in Europe.
- Cold-catalyst chemistry compounds the problem: a top commenter notes hybrid engines may never reach the ~90% NOx/HC/CO conversion efficiency of warm catalytic converters, so even fully driven hybrid modes pollute more than tests reflect.
- The EU had planned to update utility factors to reflect actual driving patterns, but has faced industry pressure to soften the reform — a replay of the Dieselgate-era testing-versus-reality gap, per the article.
Why it matters: If the EU fails to tighten utility factors, automakers keep collecting regulatory credit for PHEVs that in practice pollute nearly as much as gas cars, allowing them to delay scaling fully electric lineups while Chinese EV makers capture share in Europe — a competitive risk T&E's Mathieu explicitly flags in the piece.
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