Car makers and Big Oil lobby Euro regulators

The global automotive industry has been a willing participant in social and legislative changes to combat climate change in recent years. In Australia the FCAI has been slapping itself on the back for the easing of automotive CO2 emissions since 2002 – all as a result of new engine technology and other fuel-saving gadgets.

But the spirit of cooperation with government appears to be wearing thin in Europe, where peak bodies representing car manufacturers and the oil industry have now penned an 'open letter' to European Union policy makers concerning diesel fuel use.

The letter, sent to the European Commission, European Parliament and Council, was undersigned jointly by the presidents of the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA), the Association for Emissions Control by Catalyst (AECC), the European Association of Automotive Suppliers (CLEPA) and FuelsEurope, representing the European Petroleum Refining Industry. ACEA is Europe's equivalent to our FCAI, and its copy of the letter has been uploaded to a website as a PDF.

"Fleet renewal offers the most effective way to improve air quality. As older cars and trucks are replaced by newer models, emissions from road transport will fall as the latest emission-reducing technologies enter the market," reads one excerpt from the letter.

"With a common EU policy framework that encourages the more rapid adoption of the latest low-emissions technologies, but taking into account necessary industry lead-time, we will help improve air quality in real driving conditions, while at the same time continuing to meet current CO2 targets."

Depending on which side of the fence you sit, the letter is self-serving, or entirely reasonable. The car manufacturers and their allies argue in effect that development of new engine technology under stringent upcoming legislation will offer diminishing returns for the environment. Increasing the new purchase price of a car to subsidise the R&D cost will hurt sales and slow the adoption of cleaner engine technology across national parcs (vehicle fleets).

In other words, the automotive industry and partners consider government is moving too fast, imposing new legislation.

The problem is at its most prevalent in the case of commercial vehicles, as two Volkswagen executives explained during the global launch of the new T6 Transporter last week

"The next step is Euro 6 Step II... it's the next [stage after] Euro 6," Gisela Golling told motoring.com.au. "I think we expect it 2018/19... it's [being] discussed at present with the European Community. It's a new driving cycle...

"We use a very easy driving cycle and people say that they [the customer] want to be [achieving] nearer the driving cycle [figure], so that's a proposal similar to the American [fuel consumption standard].

Ms Golling, head of systems and functions for Volkswagen's Commercial Vehicles division, seems to believe the industry can rein in the European legislators' eco initiatives, suggesting that the proposal – if adopted – might not come into effect before 2020/21... or even later perhaps. At the present the industry is uncertain.

The new standard will likely have its largest impact on diesel-engined vehicles in Europe, but hybrids aren't necessarily the answer, the VW exec indicated. For a start, hybrid technology is expensive to develop, and secondly hybrids have met with cultural resistance in Europe – principally due to the transferred expense at the retail end of the supply chain.

"It's a very price-sensitive segment – especially in Europe," Ms Golling's colleague, Andreas Gottwald contributed. Even more so than passenger vehicles, the purchase price of commercial vehicles is as important as running costs, Gottwald explained.

"The price is mainly the decision-making [factor] for our customers. When they don't see there's a commercial [gain] in terms of total cost of ownership then it's very hard to sell them."

It's the major hurdle car companies face in gaining consumer acceptance in Europe for hybrids, plug-ins and electric vehicles. According to Gottwald, VW already has all the systems in place for green motoring. It's 'only' the inconvenience and expense for consumers standing in the way.

"We could do this – easily," he said. "The systems are all there, they're already tested... we have to see what is the request.

"At the end, someone has to pay the price."

And while customers baulk at paying more than is their wont for vehicles that are only marginally more frugal than advanced diesels, so too will the car companies baulk at acceding to government demands for cleaner-running vehicles.

Picture courtesy of  Matthew Paul Argall/Wikimedia Commons