As European emission standards become stricter in the future, Mercedes-AMG may have to take extreme measures to ensure compliance. This goes beyond just electrifying its entire line-up, as it may involve cutting down on its most powerful and polluting model as well, with up to 75% of its model range said to face the axe.
A recent report from The Financial Times revealed the potential problems that Daimler – Mercedes-Benz’s holding company – could face with new emission regulations. According to the report, the automaker is aiming to reduce its current CO2 emissions of the new-vehicle fleet of 138 g/km to about 100 g/km.
Since 2015, a target of 130 g CO2/km of CO2 applies for the EU fleet-wide average emission of new passenger cars, which was reached in 2013, with the average emissions level of the new cars registered in 2018 in the EU being 120.4 g CO2/km. However, from 2021, when the WLTP (Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicles Test Procedure) completely phases out the NEDC (New European Driving Cycle), the EU fleet-wide average emission target for new cars will be 95 g CO2/km.
Getting to the goal is easier said than done, as aside from finding technical solutions, automakers have to meet customer demands that generally favour SUVs. A current look at the European market reveals that 35% of the new deliveries come from SUVs, which are generally more polluting, as opposed to just 20% in 2014. “What we can’t control is buyer behaviour, but we have the technologies within our portfolio to get within the target range,” said Ola Kallenius, head of Mercedes-Benz Cars.
According to the publication, Ford, Mazda, and other manufacturers are not exempt from obstacles when it comes to complying with the new regulations in Europe. While the Japanese carmaker’s SkyActiv-X engine will help it to comply, it is considering cutting some versions of the MX-5 to help further with compliance
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