Automakers have been warning us that tougher emissions regulations could hasten the demise of small cars equipped with combustion engines. The Euro 7 standard has a proposed start date of 1 July 2025. According to estimates made by the European Commission, that would raise the asking price for a new car by €90 to €150. This revised proposal projects significant cost reductions as the original proposal predicted a price increase of €304.
€150 or even €304 wouldn’t be a deal-breaker, but Volkswagen CEO Thomas Schäfer cautions that the reality is very different. He believed something like a subcompact hatchback would be €3,000 to €5,000 more, which would effectively kill the car by making it unaffordable for people shopping in this segment.
16 Photo
In addition to adding a mild hybrid system, said company bosses Car at the 2022 Los Angeles Auto Show that automakers will also have to comply with stricter safety regulations that require installing expensive technology. He went on to say it took engineers several weeks to figure out if it was worth investing in a small ICE-powered car:
“Right now, we have engineers evaluating what that means. But if it does [the expected impact of EU7 on the price of cars]we will definitely not invest anymore and we will only maintain the plan to electrify as soon as possible.”
The beginning of the end for small petrol cars has been marked by Ford with the recently made announcement of discontinuing the Fiesta in 2023. That’s a huge blow for Blue Oval fans considering the B-segment model has been around for almost 50 years and several generations. The VW Polo is nearly the same age as the Fiesta, and both have served enthusiasts with various versions of the hot hatch.
The Stellantis will be EV-only in Europe at the end of the decade, effectively meaning conventionally powered models like the Peugeot 208, Opel Corsa and Citroën C3 will be discontinued in 2030 or even sooner.
