With 340 out of 640 votes, the EU Parliament in Strasbourg approved the end of the combustion engine from 2035. In concrete terms, this means that from then on, registrations for brand-new cars with combustion engines will no longer be permitted. Used cars are not affected.
The draft law is part of the EU’s “Fit for 55” climate package, which aims to reduce harmful emissions by 55 percent by 2030 compared to 1990 levels and to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. EU states, the Commission and the European Parliament had already agreed last year on the combustion engine off, and the MPs have now formally given the green light again.
The agreement stipulates that only emission-free cars and vans will be newly registered. A point of contention in the negotiations was whether there should be an exception for cars running on synthetic fuels. These so-called e-fuels are usually produced from water and CO2 using electricity. According to the October agreement, the EU Commission should examine whether vehicles with such a combustion engine could still be registered in the future. At the instigation of the FDP, the federal government had campaigned at EU level to ensure that e-fuels were not excluded from the outset.
Germany had already announced the exit date of 2035. Environment Minister Steffi Lemke (Greens) said in March 2022 in Brussels on behalf of the federal government that the goal was supported. At the world climate conference in Glasgow, several large car manufacturers, including Mercedes and Ford, had called for a sales stop for combustion engines in the leading markets from 2035.
Several Christian Democrat MEPs criticized the decision. “Parliament missed the last exit. The Greens, Social Democrats and Liberals have prevailed with their dangerous and anti-innovation line,” said Jens Gieseke, spokesman for transport policy for the CDU/CSU group.
