EVwire brief: Plug-in hybrid vehicles emit six times more CO₂ in real-world driving than official EU lab tests suggest. An analysis of data from 220,000 vehicles equipped with fuel monitors found that the average PHEV produces 145 g/km on the road, compared with just 24 g/km on paper.
That makes plug-in hybrids only 14% cleaner than conventional gasoline cars. The gap between tested and actual emissions has widened every year since 2021, and European automakers are now lobbying to block a scheduled 2027 rule update designed to close it.
The real-world emissions data, collected by the European Environment Agency in 2024, shows the gap has grown steadily worse. In 2021, PHEVs emitted 3.4 times their official tested figure. By 2022, that ratio climbed to 4.2 times. In 2023, it reached 4.9 times. The 2024 data puts it at six times.
Here’s the trend so far, as per Transport & Environment’s data:
That’s a notable trend, and not a very good one.
Thinking of getting an EV, selling yours, or need EV accessories and adapters?
Check out our fresh EVwire EV Deals page for the discounts we've gathered.
The numbers also undermine the idea that plug-in hybrids sit meaningfully between electric cars and combustion vehicles on the emissions spectrum. At 145 g/km, PHEVs produce virtually the same CO₂ as standard non-rechargeable hybrids (147 g/km) and only 12% less than pure gasoline cars (169 g/km for conventional combustion vehicles).
Lucien Mathieu, Cars Director at the nonprofit Transport & Environment, called plug-in hybrids "one of the auto industry's greatest greenwashing stunts" in a statement accompanying the findings:
Plug-in hybrids are one of the auto industry's greatest greenwashing stunts - marketed as a green solution, yet delivering a heavy environmental toll in practice. They are also a major rip-off for consumers, who end up paying far more for fuel than expected. Carmakers are demanding that the EU turn a blind eye so it can delay investing in fully electric cars.
In a LinkedIn post, Mathieu went further. He described PHEVs as "petrol in disguise," noting they pollute virtually as much as standard non-rechargeable hybrids and only 12% less than pure gasoline cars. He warned that if EU politicians cave to industry pressure on the upcoming utility factor revision, "it will create a new regulatory dieselgate."
By the way, it sure looks to us like you are an EV geek like ourselves.
Which means you belong with us: join 14,400+ reading our newsletters: subscribe
Context:
The EU uses the "utility factors" to estimate how much of a PHEV's driving happens on electric power. Those assumptions have always been generous, and the data now shows they are wildly off. A 2027 revision would tighten them to match real-world behavior. The European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA) is lobbying to kill the update.
The EU Council is expected to debate the revision on October 12, with a Parliament vote expected in November. If the update is scrapped, automakers would be able to keep a regulatory shield that lets PHEVs count as low-emission on paper while polluting nearly as much as the gasoline cars they claim to replace. A vote in the EU Parliament is due in November.
Source: Transport & Environment
DON'T FORGET to subscribe to EVwire and join 14,000+ EV geeks who want to stay ahead of the curve.
