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PHEVs release nearly five times more global warming pollution than lab-reported data indicate, as per a recent report.

Widening Discrepancy In Official and Actual CO2 Output

Data shows that PHEVs release just 19% less CO₂ than conventional gas and diesel cars, according to analysis conducted by a non-profit group. This contrasts significantly with lab tests, which assumed a three-quarters reduction in pollution.

Analysts examined data from onboard energy use meters of eight hundred thousand cars registered in Europe between 2021 and 2023. The team discovered that actual CO₂ output from PHEVs in 2023 were 4.9 times greater than lab estimates, increased from three and a half times in 2021.

“Actual emissions are increasing, while lab-reported emissions are decreasing,” said a lead analyst involved in the report. “This discrepancy is growing and poses a serious problem. Consequently, PHEVs emit nearly as heavily as petrol cars.”

Key Reasons Behind the Emissions Gap

Analysts attributed most of the gap to overestimates of the “electric driving share” – the ratio of kilometers driven in electric power compared to total distance. The team determined that only 27% of driving was completed in electric mode, while lab assumptions assumed 84%.

Additionally, when running in electric mode, pollution amounts were well above lab estimates. That happened because electric motors were insufficiently powerful sufficient to function alone, resulting to combustion motors using fossil fuels for almost a third of the travel covered in EV mode.

Regulatory and Economic Consequences

Based on estimates, the lowballing of PHEV CO2 output allowed four large carmaker groups to escape more than €5bn in penalties between 2021 and 2023, by falsely simplifying compliance with EU fleet-average CO₂ targets.

Furthermore, owners of PHEVs would spend about €500 extra per year in operating expenses than is estimated under lab tests.

“The strong claims that manufacturers like to make about their PHEV cars are obviously way off the truth,” stated a automotive expert. “Buyers are being misled into thinking that by buying a PHEV, they are benefiting the planet and cutting money. In reality, PHEVs are only slightly improved than standard gas and diesel vehicles in terms of energy use, CO₂ production, and running costs.”

Policy Debate and Automotive Lobbying

Hybrid vehicles have recently been drawn again into political debates as automakers have pressed the EU to relax CO₂ targets. A planned prohibition on new combustion engine vehicles in 2035 has faced heavy lobbying from the car industry and resistance from EU countries with significant car industries.

Several high-level politicians have suggested PHEVs as a potential “flexibility” solution to include in the legislation.

An external energy economics expert, who was unaffiliated with the study, called the analysis a “very useful addition” after years in which parts of the automotive industry argued there was too little data to accurately evaluate real-world CO2 output.

“These findings show, beyond any doubt, that the difference in lab and actual PHEV energy use and CO₂ output is much, much greater than for petrol or diesel cars,” they stated. “All policy adjustments concerning PHEVs should be made with utmost care and in the light of this evidence.”