United Kingdom’s 2040 plan
One of the major changes to this year’s MOT test requirements is tougher scrutiny of diesel cars. Not having a proper filter (DPF) could run you a £1,000 fine. However, none of this will matter if the UK follows Europe’s discussion of banning such cars. According to the Daily Express, these discussions are not immune to Brexit. The United Kingdom’s elimination of fossil fuel-powered cars could happen as early as 2040. If you’re planning to drive across continental Europe in the near future, watch out for these countries. It seems like more could follow suit. Therefore, it’s worth keeping a close eye to future regulatory changes.
Germany, Netherlands, and France lead the way
• Germany already has the go-ahead from the Federal government to ban older diesel autos in cities, followed by a nationwide combustion auto ban for 2030.
• The Netherlands wants all cars to be emissions free by 2030.
• France wishes to stop selling petrol and diesel cars by 2040.
Due to many discussions occurring around how various metropolitan areas handle congestion issues this list doesn’t include cities.
Diesel’s rise and fall
Promoted in the 1990’s by both governments and the auto industry as a cost saving, energy saving fuel, diesel cars were popularised in Europe causing a mass-market phenomenon. While it’s true less CO2 is emitted compared to petrol engines, diesel produces higher levels of Nitrogen oxides. However, this overlooked gas compound became a major issue when new studies emerged around 2012.
“The European Environment Agency found that nitrogen dioxide (NO2) from diesel fumes had caused around 71,000 premature deaths across the continent in a single year. It said the UK experienced 11,940 annual premature deaths from NO2, the second highest in Europe behind Italy. The World Health Organisation declared diesel exhaust a carcinogenic, a cause of lung cancer in the same category as asbestos and mustard gas (The Guardian).”
Alternative fuel sources
As electric cars become increasingly reliable, along with alternative energy sources, there’s opportunity to ditch dirty exhaust and breathe fresher air. Therefore, it only makes sense for the 2018 MOT test to implement new parameters around diesel cars. As a result, we suspect there’ll be more regulations like this in the future.
Photo – CNN Money