Most recently, in September, the German government once again addressed the issue of banning the sale of cars with combustion engines. According to the daily newspaper Bild, Chancellor Friedrich Merz committed at an informal meeting with coalition leaders that his cabinet would seek ways to lift or at least weaken the ban.
The position of the government as a whole is currently not unanimous. The chairman of the coalition party SPD, Matthias Miersch, claims that electromobility is the “only realistic future” for the German automotive industry, but that the party is open to compromise. Especially with regard to plug-in hybrids.
Although the Germans have not yet agreed on a unified strategy, the organization of a so-called steel summit is a step forward. There, coalition leaders are to meet with representatives of car manufacturers and steel mills.
Merz's ideas are also shared by the powerful IG Metall union, which is open to technological flexibility, and by Bavarian Minister-President Markus Söder, who warns of the loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs if the ban remains in its current form.
Resistance is also growing in other countries
However, the Germans are not the only ones questioning the future dictated by Brussels. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni already described the ban last year as “ideological madness.”
Poland has also spoken out against it for a long time, and many critical voices can also be heard from Czechia and Slovakia (although both countries voted in favor of the ban), where the automotive sector is an important pillar of the economy.
The chairman of the largest faction in the European Parliament, Manfred Weber (EPP), said in the spring that people should be able to buy gasoline and diesel cars as long as CO2 emissions are offset.
Industry: The current form of the ban is unrealistic
The automotive industry has been sounding the alarm for some time. Several companies that originally had ambitious targets for phasing out combustion engines from their production lines are now revising them.
Just a few years ago, Volvo promised to sell only electric cars from 2030 onwards, but now they are talking about ninety percent. Honda, on the other hand, planned for electric vehicles to account for a third of its production by 2030, but is now focusing more on hybrids and has lowered its target for electric cars to around a fifth of sales. General Motors, which wanted to switch completely to electric cars by 2035, has also completely abandoned this goal and stated that it was more of an “idea” than a real “strategy.”
BMW CEO Oliver Zipse points out that the ban on combustion engines in 2035 is “no longer realistic.” In his opinion, mandatory electrification will increase Europe's dependence on Chinese batteries, which is a valid reason to change the law and open it up to all low-emission technologies.
The automotive industry has long complained that Brussels is placing an enormous burden on the sector. Climate protection commitments mean that energy on the continent is more expensive than for competitors, and strict emission standards are forcing them to produce products that consumers are not yet convinced about. Added to this are Chinese car manufacturers offering good quality and affordable prices.
According to industry leaders quoted by the Financial Times, Europe should follow China's “lead” and also include hybrid vehicles, which combine an electric motor and a combustion engine, in its efforts to reduce car emissions.
“No deadline, no ban, openness to technologies... If this strategy has been successful, why are we not prepared to at least discuss a European version?” said the head of the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association, Ola Källenius, who is also the CEO of Mercedes.
His opinion was also supported by Matthias Zink, head of the CLEPA organization. This organization brings together European suppliers to the automotive industry.
In a letter to the Commission dated August 27, both organizations argued, according to British newspapers, that a ban on all cars with combustion engines was “simply unrealistic in today's world.”
Officials in Brussels remain out of touch with reality
However, Brussels is moving in the completely opposite direction. In July, the German daily newspaper Bild reported that the European Commission is considering a proposal that car rental companies and corporate customers should only buy electric cars from 2030 onwards.
To put this into perspective, around 10.6 million new cars were sold in the EU last year, with around 60 percent going to businesses and the rest being purchased by ordinary consumers.
This intermediate step would significantly change the market from 2030 onwards and put pressure on car manufacturers, without causing major dissatisfaction among consumers, whose choices would not be directly affected. For Brussels, this is an ideal tactic to emphasize and accelerate the transition to electric mobility.
However, car rental companies, which purchased 20 percent of all new cars in the EU last year, warn that this could ruin them. Their customers do not want electric cars because they have problems with charging – for example, most car rental companies at airports do not have charging stations, which is a particular obstacle when returning electric cars, which should be at least 70 percent charged.
As a result, Hertz reduced the number of electric cars by about a third (20,000) at the beginning of last year and significantly restricted the purchase of new vehicles.
In 2024, demand for electric cars from car rental companies declined across the board. According to the New York Times, battery-powered vehicles accounted for only 1.4 percent of their purchases in the first half of the year, down from 4 percent in 2023.
The chances of combustion engines escaping extinction are increasing
The Commission's plan, which would accelerate the artificial transition to electric mobility, is already causing quite a stir, even though it has not yet been officially tabled. And it is also grist to the mill for opponents of the already decided ban on combustion engines from 2035.
This is to be reviewed as early as this year, although the revision was originally not scheduled until 2026. The industry and the public can submit their comments on the law until the end of September. The result will be an assessment of technological progress, the impact on the market, and any legislative changes.
The discussion currently revolves around three theoretically possible scenarios.
The first possibility is that the ban will remain in its original form. Brussels would thus enforce the complete cessation of sales of combustion engines from 2035, as currently provided for in the adopted legislation.
The second possibility is a postponement of the deadline, which Poland and Italy had already advocated before the ban was passed. However, this is not very likely, as it would contradict Brussels' current measures and call into question the credibility of its environmental commitments.
A compromise that would save face for Brussels but give car manufacturers some leeway seems more promising. This could involve lifting the ban on hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and synthetic fuel vehicles, which would be allowed to continue to be sold after 2035.
The likelihood of this scenario, which is favored by realistic politicians and the automotive industry, is slowly but surely increasing. This is because, two years after the legislation was passed, many players are already opposed to a hard ban. Even giants such as Germany, which originally voted in favor, are changing their minds.
This is to be welcomed, because if the Union continues to blindly follow the path of green ideology, a strict ban on combustion engines will, instead of being an ecological triumph, destroy European industry, anger consumers, and make the continent even more dependent on China.