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PHEVs release almost five times more planet-heating emissions than official data indicate, as per a recent report.

Growing Discrepancy In Lab and Actual CO2 Output

Statistics reveals that PHEVs release only one-fifth lower CO₂ than traditional petrol and diesel cars, based on analysis carried out by a non-profit organization. That contrasts sharply with lab tests, which assumed a three-quarters reduction in pollution.

Analysts studied data from in-vehicle energy use meters of eight hundred thousand vehicles sold in the EU between 2021 and 2023. The team found that actual CO₂ emissions from PHEVs in 2023 were 4.9 times greater than lab estimates, increased from 3.5 times in 2021.

“Actual CO2 output are rising, while official figures are falling,” said a senior researcher participating in the report. “That gap is widening and creates a serious problem. As a result, PHEVs emit almost as much as petrol vehicles.”

Key Reasons Behind the Discrepancy

Researchers attributed the majority of the difference to overestimates of the “utility factor” – the percentage of miles driven in battery power relative to overall distance. They found that only 27% of driving was done in electric mode, whereas official assumptions suggested 84%.

Even, when operating in electric mode, pollution amounts were well above lab projections. That happened because electric motors were insufficiently powerful sufficient to operate alone, resulting to combustion motors using fossil fuels for nearly a third of the travel completed in EV mode.

Regulatory and Financial Implications

According to calculations, the underestimation of PHEV emissions enabled four large automaker companies to avoid over €5bn in fines from 2021 and 2023, by artificially easing adherence with EU average fleet CO₂ targets.

Additionally, drivers of PHEVs would pay about €500 more annually in operating expenses than would be estimated under lab tests.

“The strong claims that automakers like to make about their plug-in hybrid vehicles are obviously way off the truth,” stated a automotive expert. “Buyers are being duped into thinking that by buying a PHEV, they are helping the planet and saving costs. In reality, PHEVs are only slightly better than regular petrol and diesel cars in terms of fuel use, CO₂ emissions, and running expenses.”

Political Discussion and Industry Lobbying

Plug-in hybrid vehicles have lately been brought again into political discussions as carmakers have lobbied the EU to relax CO₂ standards. A planned ban on sales of new internal combustion vehicles in 2035 has faced intense lobbying from the automotive sector and resistance from member states with large automotive manufacturing.

Several high-level politicians have proposed PHEVs as a potential “compromise” option to include in the regulation.

One external energy economics specialist, who was not involved with the research, called the report a “very useful contribution” after a long period in which segments of the automotive sector claimed there was insufficient data to properly evaluate real-world emissions.

“The results demonstrate, beyond any doubt, that the gap between lab and actual PHEV energy use and CO₂ output is significantly greater than for petrol or diesel cars,” they stated. “All regulatory changes concerning PHEVs should be implemented with extreme caution and considering this data.”