Response to e-car boom: EU plans to tighten Euro 7 emissions standard

A response to the e-car boom
The EU is planning a stricter Euro 7 emission standard

11/10/2022 12:27 PM

Europe wants to be climate neutral by 2050. As one of the climate culprits, the transport sector has received particular attention. According to the European Environment Agency, cars accounted for a quarter of continental emissions in 2019. The EU is trying to counter this by gradually increasing emissions standards.

With the new Euro 7 emissions standard, the EU Commission intends to introduce specifications not only for exhaust emissions but also for emissions from brakes and tyres. Given the rise of electric cars, brakes and tires are “on track to become major sources of particulate emissions from vehicles,” the commission said in a presentation of the new emissions standard.

Euro 7 applies to cars, vans, trucks and buses sold in the EU. According to the commission, the limit values ​​for cars and vans should be marginally lower than emission standard 6, which has been in force since 2015. The maximum emission of nitrogen oxides for petrol engines should be 60 milligrams per kilometer. , the limit should drop from 80 to 60 milligrams for vehicles with diesel engines.

For trucks and buses, the threshold values ​​should be further reduced. In addition to revising pollutant classes for combustion engines, the Commission also presented proposals for specifications for the minimum service life of batteries in electric cars.

The new rules will only come into effect in three to five years

According to the commission, the new rules will apply to cars and vans from July 2025 and to trucks and buses from July 2027. The EU Parliament and member states are now initially dealing with the proposals.

Car emissions are classified into pollutant categories in order to gradually reduce them. For example, emissions of hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides and particulates are regulated. Regulation began with Euro 1 in 1992, and Euro 6 has been in place since 2015. Drivers can find their car’s emission class from the vehicle registration document.