European customers are starting to move away from diesel cars

In recent years, the most common sight was vehicles powered by diesel engines selling far more than petrol vehicles. We all thought that a diesel car, although a little more expensive to buy, would pay off thanks to its lower fuel consumption and the lower price of diesel compared with petrol.

CO2 contributes to the greenhouse effect, but it is not toxic Moreover, as CO2 emission figures were slightly lower, governments encouraged citizens to buy this type of vehicle and to reduce the price of diesel. However, they only focused on CO2, a gas that contributes to the greenhouse effect but is not toxic, forgetting about emissions of other gases that should be just as worrying, if not more so, than CO2 itself.

Now, it seems that ordinary citizens are realising how dirty diesel engines are because of the restrictive measures in many major European cities. This, added to the higher taxes to be paid on a diesel, together with the much lower consumption of today’s modern petrol engines, is changing the mindset of European people. Although in Spain, as always, we need a longer period of time to take it in.

So far this year, the percentage of diesel vehicle sales has fallen in Western Europe. In April, the drop was 3.1%, leaving these vehicles with a market share below 50%, specifically 49.7%.

By segment, the cars that lost the most diesel sales in favour of petrol engines or alternative fuels were compact cars, subcompacts (segment B) and small MPVs. Registrations of diesel city cars remained stable, but this segment has never been characterised by high diesel sales.

Large executive cars (full-size saloons) are around 80% diesel-powered. This figure has also fallen, though slightly.

In our country, the figures for last April showed a 56% share for diesel cars, while the cumulative figure for 2015 was a very high 63%.

If you are thinking of buying a car, bear in mind that it may not be a good idea to buy a diesel. Do the sums: although the fuel is slightly cheaper and the engine uses a little less, you will pay more for the vehicle, the taxes will be higher and your city will be a little dirtier because of your car.

Via | AutomotiveNews