Combustion engines facing early retirement

Following the lead of General Motors, Volvo and other global car-makers, the Hyundai Motor Group has reportedly halved its R&D budgets for internal combustion engines (ICE) and is seeking to fully electrify its vehicle range by 2040.

Impending Euro 7 emissions regulations are forcing the hands of many car-makers, with reports that the new legislation could kill off petrol and diesel engines from EU marketplaces by 2026, sending shockwaves through the automotive industry.

And now Reuters reports that Hyundai Motor Group’s senior leaders – overseeing the Hyundai, Kia and Genesis brands – have approved a massive R&D spending reduction.

“Hyundai has stopped developing new powertrains for internal combustion engine cars,” one of the sources close to Hyundai told Reuters.

“It is an important business move, which first and foremost allows the release of R&D resources to focus on the rest: electric motors, batteries, fuel-cells.”

To timeframe was given for the plan, but it comes as the Hyundai Motor Group is fast-tracking a raft of all-new electric cars for global markets, including Australia, with the likes of the Kia EV6 and Hyundai IONIQ 5.

In January 2021, General Motors CEO Mary Barra declared that the US auto giant would completely phase out internal combustion engines by 2035 in light-duty vehicles, which includes all its cars, SUVs and most pick-up trucks.

Ford has promised that by 2030 it will only sell fully electric vehicles in Europe, while Volvo has made no secret of plans kill off all its combustion engines by 2030.

The new Stellantis group – covering Chrysler, RAM, Jeep, Dodge, Peugeot, Alfa Romeo, Citroen, Fiat, Opel et al – has stated that it is no longer investing in combustion engine R&D and Mercedes-Benz is also reducing ICE investment.

The Volkswagen Group has invested countless billions in its new EV platforms as it continues to distance itself from the taint of dieselgate. The German car-maker wants to see half of all vehicle sales in the US to be electric by 2030, and around 70 per cent in the EU in the same timeframe.

As the governments of the world’s biggest car markets, including China, Europe and significant parts of the US, continue to tighten legislation against tailpipe emissions, more and more global car companies are slashing research and development budgets for future combustion engine programs.

Investment in solid state battery technology is ramping up and could be a game-changer for EV liveability, with increased range and much faster charging.

An Australian company, meanwhile, has recently made a significant breakthrough with aluminium-ion battery tech that could offer similar advances.

Even the world’s second-largest car-maker, Toyota, is embarking on a considerable EV product assault over the next decade to meet stringent emissions regulations increasingly being imposed upon major global markets.

There are some outliers, however, with the likes of Porsche investing heavily in synthetic fuel development that could keep the iconic 911 sports car’s combustion engines alive for many decades to come.