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Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles release almost 5x more planet-heating pollution than official figures indicate, according to a recent analysis.

Growing Discrepancy In Official and Actual Emissions

Statistics shows that PHEVs emit only 19% less CO₂ than conventional gas and diesel vehicles, according to analysis carried out by a advocacy organization. This differs sharply with laboratory estimates, which assumed a three-quarters decrease in pollution.

Researchers studied information from onboard energy use meters of eight hundred thousand vehicles sold in Europe between 2021 and 2023. The team found that actual CO₂ emissions from PHEVs in 2023 were 4.9 times higher than official estimates, increased from three and a half times in 2021.

“Real-world CO2 output are rising, while official emissions are falling,” stated a lead researcher participating in the study. “That discrepancy is widening and poses a significant issue. Consequently, PHEVs pollute almost as much as petrol cars.”

Primary Reasons Driving the Emissions Gap

Researchers attributed the majority of the difference to inflated estimates of the “electric driving share” – the percentage of kilometers travelled in battery mode compared to total distance. The team found that only 27% of driving was completed in electric mode, whereas official assumptions assumed over four-fifths.

Even, when running in electric mode, emission levels were significantly higher than official estimates. That happened because EV motors were not strong sufficient to function alone, leading to engines using gasoline for nearly a third of the travel completed in electric mode.

Policy and Economic Implications

Based on calculations, the lowballing of PHEV CO2 output allowed several major automaker companies to avoid more than €5bn in penalties from 2021 and 2023, by falsely simplifying compliance with European Union average fleet CO₂ standards.

Additionally, drivers of PHEVs could spend approximately €500 extra annually in operating expenses than would be estimated under lab conditions.

“The strong claims that automakers like to make about their plug-in hybrid cars are clearly far from the truth,” stated a automotive expert. “Buyers are being misled into believing that by purchasing a PHEV, they are benefiting the environment and cutting money. In reality, PHEVs are only slightly improved than regular gas and diesel vehicles in terms of energy use, CO₂ production, and operating costs.”

Political Debate and Automotive Lobbying

Hybrid vehicles have recently been brought back into political debates as automakers have lobbied the European Union to relax CO₂ standards. A planned ban on new internal combustion cars in 2035 has faced intense lobbying from the automotive sector and resistance from EU countries with significant automotive manufacturing.

Several senior politicians have suggested plug-in hybrids as a possible “flexibility” solution to include in the regulation.

One independent energy economics specialist, who was not involved with the study, called the report a “very useful addition” after years in which segments of the car sector argued there was too little data to properly assess actual CO2 output.

“These findings demonstrate, beyond any doubt, that the difference between lab and real-world PHEV energy use and CO₂ output is significantly larger than for petrol or diesel vehicles,” they said. “All policy changes concerning PHEVs should be implemented with utmost care and in the light of this evidence.”