🔗 Share this article

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles produce nearly five times greater global warming pollution than official figures indicate, as per a recent analysis.

Widening Discrepancy Between Official and Actual Emissions

Data shows that PHEVs emit only one-fifth lower CO₂ than conventional gas and diesel cars, based on research carried out by a advocacy organization. That differs significantly with lab tests, which suggested a 75% reduction in pollution.

Analysts examined information from onboard energy use meters of 800,000 cars registered in Europe between 2021 and 2023. They discovered that actual CO₂ output from PHEVs in 2023 were nearly five times greater than lab estimates, up from three and a half times in 2021.

“Real-world CO2 output are increasing, while official emissions are decreasing,” said a lead researcher participating in the study. “This gap is growing and creates a significant problem. As a result, PHEVs emit nearly as much as petrol cars.”

Key Reasons Driving the Discrepancy

Analysts attributed most of the gap to inflated estimates of the “utility factor” – the percentage of kilometers driven in electric mode relative to overall mileage. They found that only a quarter of travel was done in electric mode, whereas official estimates assumed 84%.

Even, when operating in EV mode, emission amounts were significantly higher than official projections. That occurred because EV motors were insufficiently powerful sufficient to operate alone, resulting to combustion motors burning gasoline for almost a third of the travel covered in EV mode.

Policy and Economic Consequences

According to estimates, the underestimation of PHEV emissions enabled four major carmaker groups to avoid over €5bn in penalties between 2021 and 2023, by artificially simplifying adherence with European Union fleet-average CO₂ targets.

Additionally, drivers of PHEVs could pay about €500 more per year in running costs than is estimated under lab conditions.

“The bold claims that manufacturers like to make about their plug-in hybrid cars are obviously far from the mark,” stated a automotive analyst. “Buyers are being duped into believing that by purchasing a PHEV, they are helping the planet and saving money. Actually, PHEVs are little better than regular gas and diesel cars in terms of fuel use, CO₂ emissions, and operating costs.”

Policy Debate and Automotive Pressure

Hybrid cars have recently been drawn back into policy debates as automakers have lobbied the European Union to weaken CO₂ standards. A proposed ban on new combustion engine cars in 2035 has faced intense pressure from the car sector and opposition from member states with large car manufacturing.

Some senior officials have suggested PHEVs as a potential “flexibility” option to introduce in the legislation.

An independent energy policy specialist, who was unaffiliated with the research, described the report a “very useful addition” after years in which segments of the automotive sector argued there was insufficient information to properly evaluate actual CO2 output.

“The results demonstrate, without question, that the difference between official and actual PHEV energy use and CO₂ emissions is significantly greater than for gasoline or diesel cars,” the expert stated. “All policy changes concerning PHEVs should be made with utmost care and considering this data.”