Automakers such as Stellantis, Ford, Honda and General Motors have announced a spate of new or updated internal-combustion engines (ICE) in the past year. It’s a sign they’re betting that the transition to zero-emission vehicles will be a lengthy one in developed markets — North America and Europe — and not even on the radar in others.
“The EV switch is going to take more time than people think it’s going to take,” said Robert Karwel, senior manager of the Canadian automotive practice at J.D. Power.
Canada and California, for example, are mandating that 100 per cent of new-vehicle sales be ZEVs by 2035. Similar legislation exists in the European Union.
Stellantis is among those automakers funneling billions into electrification while continuing to invest in the development of ICE technology. Vehicles now and in the near future require low-emission, fuel-efficient internal-combustion power, the company wrote in an email to Automotive News Canada.
“We are targeting 50 per cent of our Canada and U.S. sales to be battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) by 2030, but that still leaves 50 per cent of our sales with internal-combustion and PHEV [plug-in hybrid vehicle] technologies, and they need to be as efficient and planet-friendly as we can make them.”
2035 TARGET IN DOUBT