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PHEVs emit nearly five times more planet-heating emissions than official figures show, as per a new report.

Widening Gap Between Official and Actual CO2 Output

Statistics reveals that PHEVs emit just 19% less CO₂ than traditional gas and diesel vehicles, according to analysis carried out by a advocacy group. This differs sharply with laboratory tests, which assumed a 75% decrease in emissions.

Analysts examined information from onboard energy use monitors of eight hundred thousand vehicles sold in Europe from 2021 and 2023. They discovered that real-world CO₂ emissions from PHEVs in 2023 were nearly five times higher than official estimates, up from 3.5 times in 2021.

“Real-world emissions are rising, while lab-reported figures are falling,” said a lead researcher participating in the report. “That gap is widening and poses a significant issue. As a result, PHEVs emit nearly as much as gasoline vehicles.”

Key Reasons Behind the Emissions Gap

Researchers linked the majority of the difference to inflated estimates of the “electric driving share” – the percentage of miles driven in electric mode relative to total mileage. They found that only a quarter of travel was done in EV mode, whereas official estimates suggested 84%.

Even, when running in EV mode, emission amounts were well above official estimates. That occurred because electric motors were insufficiently powerful sufficient to function alone, leading to combustion motors burning gasoline for nearly one-third of the distance covered in electric mode.

Regulatory and Economic Implications

Based on estimates, the lowballing of PHEV CO2 output enabled four large automaker companies to escape over €5bn in penalties from 2021 and 2023, by falsely simplifying compliance with EU average fleet CO₂ standards.

Furthermore, drivers of PHEVs could pay about €500 extra per year in running expenses than is estimated under lab tests.

“The bold claims that automakers like to make about their plug-in hybrid cars are clearly far from the truth,” stated a automotive expert. “Consumers are being duped into believing that by buying a PHEV, they are helping the environment and saving costs. Actually, PHEVs are little improved than regular petrol and diesel cars in terms of fuel consumption, CO₂ production, and running costs.”

Political Discussion and Industry Lobbying

Hybrid cars have lately been brought again into political debates as automakers have pressed the European Union to relax CO₂ standards. A planned prohibition on sales of new internal combustion vehicles in 2035 has faced heavy lobbying from the automotive sector and resistance from EU countries with significant car manufacturing.

Several high-level politicians have suggested PHEVs as a possible “compromise” option to introduce in the legislation.

An independent energy policy expert, who was not involved with the research, called the report a “very useful contribution” after a long period in which parts of the car sector argued there was insufficient information to accurately assess real-world emissions.

“The results show, beyond any doubt, that the difference in lab and actual PHEV energy use and CO₂ emissions is much, much larger than for gasoline or conventional vehicles,” they said. “All policy adjustments regarding PHEVs should be implemented with utmost caution and in the light of this evidence.”