PHEVs coming under scrutiny: Sales of plug-in hybrids are soaring, but environmentalists have labelled them a con

摘要

The first whiff of gunpowder has been smelled in the stand-off between car makers and environmental campaigners as plug-in hybrids start to make a serious impact on the sales charts. UK sales of PHEVs shot up 84% in the first nine months of 2020, despite the two-month lockdown pause. In September alone, 12,400 were registered, taking 4% of the total market. PHEVs are essential for reducing manufacturers' fleet-average CO_2 emissions under tough new European Union laws (which the UK has chosen to copy from 2021) because of their incredibly impressive official fuel economy figures. But environmental groups are questioning more than ever whether they achieve anything like those figures in reality.