The diesel engine’s days are numbered in Europe – industry analyst

Once praised as the “miracle engine”, the diesel motor is slowly disappearing in Europe despite its above-average popularity in Germany, France and Italy as car buyers find better alternatives with lower CO2 emissions, Focus Online reports. Diesel cars are now becoming obsolete in Europe, according to industry analyst Ferdinand Dudenhöffer. Ever fewer buyers in Europe are opting for diesel cars, with market shares even falling below five percent in some countries. While a comparatively large number of customers in Germany continue to choose a diesel, the days of the fuel in the country are also numbered, he argues. In the first nine months of 2020, only 27 percent of all registrations in Western Europe were diesel cars, compared to 31 percent last year and 58 percent in 2011. Stricter EU CO2 regulations and the ban on new cars with internal combustion engines in the UK would accelerate the decline, Dudenhöffer adds. "It's a quiet farewell, but a trend that can no longer be stopped: Europe is saying goodbye to diesel." 

In Germany, the diesel car market share of new registrations stands at almost 30 percent; in France, it’s 31 percent and in Italy 34.6 percent, each much higher than in other countries. In the Netherlands it’s only 4.5 percent and in Norway 10 percent. “With Europe, diesel is losing its only remaining market region,” Dudenhöffer said in study, noting that the diesel engine is again being relegated to commercial vehicles. "There are much better alternatives than diesel for CO2 savings," he added.