EURO 7 – the new exhaust emission standard is terrifying.

Time passes and the new EURO 7 emission standard remains a mystery. It has raised many questions and doubts which might not necessarily be true. So far, it is unknown what the principles of the new EURO 7 emission standard will eventually be, or when it will be enforced.

When will the EURO 7 standard be enforced?

The European Commission plans that EURO 7 will apply to cars registered from 2025 – probably from 1st January or 1st July. In the case of trucks and buses, the introduction of the EURO 7 standard is expected to take two years later.

 

However, for the cars to be able to meet the updated requirements of the EURO standard, the automotive industry has to be informed in advance. It is not so obvious, because although the project was finally – on November 10, 2022 – made public, the final version of the regulation will not appear until 2024.

It is already known that the new standard will not be as restrictive as the automotive industry feared. After the first announcements were released, it has been stated straightforward that – meeting the requirements is technically unattainable, the end of the gasoline engines has been announced, and the organisations from various European countries have sounded the alarm.

It is difficult to estimate to what extent it was influenced by protests, and how well the European Commission estimated its plans concerning the combustion engines. The promotion of the electric engines over the combustion ones is no secret, but “the green deal” in transport requires time, and the newly introduced emission standards cannot be unattainable. The Union decision-makers seem to realise this – which is definitely good news for the automotive industry. Anyway, there is no shortage of protesters against EURO 7, as well as voices that the new exhaust emission standard can still be blocked at the EU level.

 

 

 

What plans have been connected to the new standard so far?

 

Advisory Group on Vehicle Emission Standards some time ago developed a comprehensive report that electrified the industry. The experts of the organisation suggested imposing extremely strict requirements on the manufacturers, which would be the foundations of the new EURO 7 emission standard. They postulated, among others:

• lowering the limit of nitrogen oxides emissions to 0.03 g/km or even 0.01 g/km (cars meeting the EURO 6 standard had permissible nitrogen oxides emissions of 0.06 g/km NOx in the case of internal combustion engines powered by gasoline or 0.08 g/km nitrogen oxide in the case of diesel)
• stricter requirements for carbon monoxide emissions to 0.3 or 0.1 g/km (from the current 1 g/km for gasoline engines, and 0.5 g/km for diesel engines)
• limiting the average carbon dioxide (CO2) emission by all models offered by individual manufacturers to 30 g/km (for comparison – currently the accepted average emission remains on the level of 95 g/km, depending mainly on the weight of cars of a given brand the requirements might be slightly higher or lower).

In conclusion, the EURO 7 standard in its original form assumed the reduction of exhaust emissions to a level that in practice would lead to the almost complete elimination of combustion-powered passenger cars. The aim was to encourage drivers to make a crowded switch to electric cars.

 

Expected changes in the emission analysis procedure

These are not all of the revelations in the regulations which the new vehicles would be supposed to meet when EURO 7 takes effect. The European Union would also want changes in the RDE (Real Driving Emissions) testing procedure introduced in the subsequent editions of the EURO 6 standard.

Officials would like to expand the scope of conditions in which cars would have to meet emission-reducing objectives, which means, among others, a further obligation to monitor parameters in passenger cars. A change extending the period of time of vehicle exploitation included in the regulations would also enter into force.

So far, the manufacturers of new vehicles must follow the regulations for 160.000 kilometers driven by a given car. Introducing the regulations in the postulated form would increase this range to 15 years or 240.000 kilometers, which would often embrace practically the entire vehicle exploitation period.

Another “surprise”, which EURO 7 would introduce, would be resigning from the tolerance in the PEMS measurements (measurement of emission in the real conditions). So far, the tolerance has reached 25-30 mg. The new law would reduce it to 0.

 

What changes might happen after introducing the EURO 7 standard?

 

All the above elements look very good from the point of view of the environment. But what does the introduction of the EURO 7 standard mean for the manufacturers? The automotive industry – especially with the voices of its German representatives – has expressed doubts that such stringent standards for internal combustion engines are impossible to meet. It would have to mean the end of the vehicles equipped with the gasoline and diesel engines. It would be a bit easier for the hybrids, but in their case as well meeting the requirements would be debatable and dependent on e.g. the driving conditions.

 

 

Truck manufacturers protest against EURO 7

The automotive industry believes that the introduction of the new Euro 7/VII standard does not make sense, as it means huge costs and a further increase in the prices of new passenger cars, vans and trucks with an internal combustion engine.

According to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA), an industry organization associating, among others, DAF Trucks, Daimler Truck, Iveco, Mercedes-Benz, Renault, Stellantis or the Volkswagen Group, meeting the requirements of EURO 7 for trucks will mean the need to incur huge capital expenditures at the expense of the development of battery technology and electric cars.

Does it make sense to launch trucks with new, greener combustion engines in 2027, since they will no longer be available for sale from 2035? This question constantly arises in the context of the EURO 7.

According to ACEA calculations, it doesn’t, because Euro VII means a reduction in nitrogen oxide emissions by only 2% for trucks. Moreover, Euro 7 will mean a only slightly greater benefit for passenger cars – 5% lower emissions.

Manufacturers argue that the current Euro 6/VI standard is already strict enough and gives measurable results in the form of lower emissions. However, the European Commission remains adamant and shows other figures – by 2035, thanks to Euro 7, nitrogen oxide emissions are expected to fall by 35% compared to the Euro 6 fleet. The EU regulator admits that this will affect the purchase costs.

According to calculations, according to the European Commission’s plan, Euro 7/VII will mean an increase in the average price of a new car by EUR 304 and as much as EUR 2.681 in the case of trucks.

It is also to cover electric cars in terms of battery life and set maximum limits on brake friction contamination and tyre abrasion. The European Commission predicts that after the introduction of Euro 7/VII, this type of pollution will be the main problem in the case of new cars.

This is not the end of problems and requirements for the industry and drivers. The switch to pure electric vehicles alone may result in a reduction in employment in the automotive industry, and a lack of an alternative for drivers. Battery cars do not even need oil and some filters, and have fewer parts than their combustion counterparts, especially when it comes to the engine.

That is why the European Union plans to create a fund to alleviate the cost of switching to electric vehicles. Ultimately, however, it is the drivers who will have to pay the bill for the European Union’s transition to electromobility. This is inevitable – and whether it will be forced by the EURO 7 standard or a number of other factors remains a secondary issue.

 

What does the EURO 7 standard actually introduce?

The project, finally published in November 2022, shows that the changes will not be as drastic as feared – and the rumors of “the end of combustion engines” were definitely exaggerated. What are the actual objectives of the EURO 7 standard?

• Reduction of pollutant emissions – de facto for cars with diesel engines, because the standard equalizes the limits on nitrogen oxides emissions. From now on, the upper emission limit will be 60 mg/km for both gasoline and diesel cars.
• Measurement of pollutants not only on the basis of substances coming out of the exhaust pipe, but also other vehicle components – e.g. dust from the brake system.
• A longer period within which cars will have to meet the requirements of the standard – so far it has been 5 years or 100.000 km, according to EURO 7 it will be 10 years or 200.000 km.

According to the project, the aim is also to make the measurements more realistic so that the cars meet the assumptions during normal operation, not only under test conditions. The European Commission also advocated regulating the durability of batteries for electric cars. For now, details on this matter still have to be waited for.

 

EURO 7 vs. the combustion engines

The introduction of the EURO 7 standard was supposed to – according to many – herald the end of the combustion engines. The latest statement of the European Union is that the combustion engines – whether gasoline or diesel – will still remain in use for some time. Therefore, there is not much reason for concern, either in Poland or in the more demanding West.

 

 

If yes, then probably not due to the top-down rejection of the combustion engines, but rather due to developing an alternative – creating such conditions which will encourage the buyers to purchase gradually more often the electric vehicles.

Improvement of the infrastructure (which at this stage still leaves a lot to be desired in Poland), incentives for drivers, solutions that increase practicality in cars powered by renewable sources – it is these types of changes that are able to actually affect the image of road reality and contribute to the fact that emissions will be reduced.

 

The EURO 7 standard vs. the clean transport zones

One of the ways of improving the air quality, especially in the city centres, is creating the so-called clean transport zones. They introduce certain entry limits for cars equipped with the combustion engines. In other words – a car that does not meet a specific exhaust standard, including in terms of particulate emissions, will not be allowed into a CTZ.

 

Then what does it mean in terms of the EURO 7 standard?

So far… nothing. Although it might sound quite blatant, it is actually too early to discuss EURO 7 in the context of the clean transport zones. The cars meeting the requirements of the EURO 4 standard will be allowed to enter these zones until 2025. And until 2030 – the cars meeting the requirements of EURO 5. In terms of the currently applied EURO 6d – until 2035. Therefore, from the point of view of the cars meeting the requirements of the future EURO 7 standard, the perspective is quite distant.

 

Can this be the end of the combustion engines?

The end of the combustion engines is of course a matter of time – most probably, however, it will NOT come as a result of the EURO 7 standard.The cars with the combustion engines are still going to be used on the Polish and European roads in general for many years – sold both on the primary, as well as the secondary market – quite naturally yielding to the electric vehicles, which will be the predominant offer of the manufacturers in some time.

The automotive industry will be forced to follow the new regulations and work in compliance with the more and more rigid requirements, but the introduction of the EURO 7 standard will not be the “nail in the coffin”, which the European Commission has confirmed in its announcements. The media sensations and increase of the tension sometimes comes in handy, helping the enforcement of certain concessions. And to motivate companies that are not keen on change to allocate funds intended for maintaining the status quo to actual innovations.

Nevertheless, the reports, which are still quite general, about what the principles of the future EURO standard – especially EURO 7 – should not a reason to panic. In 2023, negotiations between the EU member states will take place. They will deal with EURO 7, particulate emissions, trucks and all other issues that make the new EURO standard so troublesome for some.

And although compared to the previous ones, the new EURO 7 standard will of course be more stringent, it is worth following the reports, because a lot of unexpected things can happen in its matter.