The internal combustion has an expiry date. But when is it?
(Image credit: Mercedes)
Several countries, particularly across western Europe, have announced plans to outlaw the sale of new cars powered by internal combustion in the next decade. The EU is to effectively ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars, including hybrids, from 2035. The U.K. is on a similar timeline, with cars powered exclusively by internal combustion banned from 2030, followed by hybrids in 2035.
Norway and South Korea have a more aggressive schedule, with bans taking place from 2025, followed by Belgium in 2026 and Austria in 2027. In the U.S., Washington state is targeting 2027 and both California and New York have bans proposed for 2030. Other U.S. states aren’t planning to ban the sale of ICE (internal combustion engined) cars until 2040 or even 2050.
All of this has prompted car manufacturers to react. Many now have plans to phase out ICE cars over the coming years, with many tens of billions spent to ensure the sales bans are met. Here is a look at how most major manufacturers are switching to electrification.
Aston Martin
First EV due 2025
95 percent electric by 2030
Aston Martin Valhalla plug-in hybrid (Image credit: Aston martin)
Aston Martin plans to introduce its first all-electric car in 2025. It will be a replacement to one of its current front-engined GT offerings, most likely the DB11. This car will be followed a year later by an electric crossover, likely sitting below the DBX SUV.
Although hybrid propulsion doesn’t seem to be a primary focus for Aston Martin, a plug-in hybrid version of the DBX is expected in 2023. After that, Aston expects 95 percent of its sales to be hybrid or fully electric by 2030 — race cars will account for the remaining five percent.
Audi
Electric-only launches after 2026
Electric only sales by 2030 in certain markets
(Image credit: Audi)
Audi said in 2021 that every new car it launches from 2026 will be electric, and that production of internal combustion engines will be phased out by 2033. That said, the company is aware that some markets will likely still demand internal combustion vehicles beyond the 2030 and 2035 deadlines set by some nations. As such, it hasn’t said yet when it expects engine production to cease.
Bentley
First EV in 2025
EV only by 2030
(Image credit: Bentley)
Bentley said in early-2022 that it plans to invest £2.5 billion over the next decade to become a fully-electric brand by 2030. The first Bentley EV is due to arrive in 2025, and will be followed by a new EV every year for the following five years.
The company already sells plug-in hybrid versions of its Flying Spur and Bentayga, and says every vehicle it produces will be electrified (in other words, electric or a plug-in hybrid) by the start of 2026.
BMW
Global sales to hit 50% all-electric by 2030
Investing in hydrogen
(Image credit: BMW)
BMW said in 2021 that it expects half of its global sales to be fully electric by 2030. The company already sells the electric i3, iX3, i4 and iX, and will be adding new vehicles in the form of the iX1, i3 saloon, i5 and i7 before the middle of this decade.
All of that said, BMW is still keenly investing in hydrogen, and plans to produce a small number of vehicles as part of a pilot programme. The company did a similar thing with a fleet of electric Minis back in 2010.
Ferrari
First EV due by 2025
Ferrari SF90 (Image credit: Ferrari)
Famously tight-lipped on electrification when headed by the late Sergio Marchionne, Ferrari now says its first all-electric car will arrive in 2025. The design of its first EV could be quite a departure from what we’ve seen from Ferrari to date, as former Apple design duo Sir Jony Ive and Marc Newson, through the former’s design agency LoveFrom, were drafted in to work on the EV in 2021.
The car will arrive half a decade after Ferrari’s first mass-produced plug-in hybrid, the SF90, and two years after its first SUV, which is due to land in 2023.
Fiat
Fully electric by 2030
(Image credit: Mike Dotta | Shutterstock)
Fiat announced in 2021 that it would start phasing out internal combustion vehicles in 2025, before going fully-electric by 2030. The first step on that path came in 2020 with the latest generation of Fiat 500, which is available exclusively as an electric vehicle — albeit with the previous model still also on sale.
Parent company Stellantis, which oversees 14 brands, plans to invest $35.5 billion into electrification by 2025, with 55 electrified vehicles due in the US and Europe by the middle of this decade. 40 of those will be all-electric, while the rest will presumably be plug-in hybrids.
Ford
Electrified by 2026 (Europe)Electric only passenger car sales by 2030 (Europe)
40% electric sales by 2030 (U.S.)
(Image credit: Ford)
Ford is currently in the process of spending $22 billion on electrification globally. It’s hoped this will result in 600,000 global electric vehicle sales by 2023, in a bid to become the second-largest U.S.-based EV maker. Tesla being the first.
For Europe, Ford plans to only sell plug-in hybrid and fully-electric passenger vehicles by mid-2026, and for all sales to be fully-electric by 2030. For commercial vehicles, Ford Europe expects two-thirds of sales to be accounted for by plug-in and fully-electric vehicles by 2030.
In the U.S. Ford is being a little less ambitious, aiming for 40% of its domestic sales to be electric by 2030. Further goals have not been announced publicly.
General Motors
30 new global EVs by 2025
(Image credit: Cadillac)
General Motors plans to invest $35 billion on electric and autonomous vehicle development between 2020 and 2025. With regard to the former, GM has committed to introducing 30 new global electric vehicles by the middle of the decade, with more than 20 of those coming to the U.S. market. These vehicles will be spread across GM’s Cadillac, Buick, GMC and Chevrolet brands.
Like others operating in the U.S. market, GM hasn’t yet said when it intends to stop producing internal combustion vehicles. However, it is expected its global EV sales will reach one million per year by 2025.
Honda
100% electric or hydrogen by 2040
(Image credit: Honda)
Honda is taking a slower approach than some when it comes to global electrification. The company is bringing its first mass-market all-electric car, the Prologue, to the U.S. in 2024 and expects 70,000 annual sales.
The company as a whole expects to see 500,000 fully-electric sales annually by 2030, and by that year it will have introduced 10 new electrified cars (including plug-in hybrids) in China.
In 2021, Honda said it hoped to only sell battery electric and hydrogen fuel cell cars globally by 2040. Its goal is to reach 40 percent of that target by 2030, then 80 percent by 2035.
Hyundai
Ending internal combustion sales in 2035 (Europe)
Ending internal combustion sales in 2040 (Global)
(Image credit: Hyuandai)
Hyundai is another car manufacturer that has a quicker plan for electrification in Europe than in the U.S. and elsewhere. The South Korean firm said in 2021 it plans to stop selling internal combustion vehicles in Europe in 2035, then globally in 2040. It also said electric cars will make up 30 percent of its global sales by 2030, before hitting 80 percent a decade later.
Kia
EV-only in Europe by 2035
EV-only globally by 2040
(Image credit: Kia)
Kia is in the process of launching seven all-electric cars by 2026, which doesn’t seem to include the newly-launched Kia EV6. Kia is another manufacturer to be interested in the hydrogen alternative to battery-powered EVs. Kia hopes hydrogen will power 40 percent of the electric cars it sells globally by 2030, and for 880,000 total EV sales annually.
As for being EV-only, Kia is aiming to achieve this goal in Europe by 2035, and by 2040 for the rest of its key global markets, including the U.S. The company as a whole intends to be carbon neutral by 2045.
Jaguar Land Rover
Jaguar to be an all-electric brand by 2025
First of six electric Land Rovers due in 2024
(Image credit: Jaguar)
Jaguar Land Rover announced in early 2021 that both of its brands will become fully electric in the coming years. The first electric Land Rover, expected to be related to the 2022 Range Rover, will arrive in 2024, and is to be followed by five more Land Rover EVs in as many years.
Meanwhile, Jaguar is to be reimagined as a luxury, all-electric brand from 2025. The I-Pace, currently JLR’s only fully-electric offering, will be updated, but remain separate to the new family of battery-powered vehicles.
Moreover, all Jaguar and Land Rover nameplates will be available in pure-electric form by the end of this decade. This suggests internal combustion versions, likely with plug-in hybrid assistance, will also still be on sale in 2030. JLR is also interested in the potential of hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles in the next decade.
Jeep
Five electric SUVs by 2025
(Image credit: Stellantis North America)
The electrification plans of parent company Stellantis will include an all-electric Jeep SUV offered in every vehicle segment by 2025 — or in English, expect to potentially see five all-electric Jeeps by the middle of this decade. However, it isn’t clear yet how these vehicles will be distributed across Jeep’s global markets.
Lotus
100% electric after 2022 Emira launch
(Image credit: Lotus)
Lotus is close to delivering its first electric car, the 2,000-horsepower Evija. After the launch of the gasoline-powered Emira, due sometime in the coming months, the British car company will be electric-only.
The coming years will see a whole family of all-electric Lotus cars, from SUVs and so-called lifestyle vehicles of various sizes, to sports cars.
Mercedes
Fully electric by 2030
At least one EV in each segment by late 2022
(Image credit: Mercedes)
Mercedes is aiming to become a fully-electric brand by the end of the decade, with EVs to be offered across all vehicle segments before the end of 2022. From 2025, Mercedes claims that all its new launches will be electric-only. As with other carmakers, Mercedes is planning to spend a lot of money on its electrification strategy, stumping up in excess of £30 billion to transform its vehicle offering.
Porsche
718 Cayman and Boxster to go electric in 2024
Internal-combustion 911 will survive beyond 2030
(Image credit: Porsche)
Porsche’s Taycan will be joined by electric versions of its Macan SUV, 718 Cayman and Boxster sports cars towards the middle of the decade. More electric models are expected by 2030, but Porsche has repeatedly refused to commit to a roadmap for electrifying its iconic 911.
Rolls-Royce
Fully-electric from 2030
First EV to arrive in 2023
Rolls-Royce Phantom Electric experimental (Image credit: Rolls-Royce)
BMW-owned Rolls-Royce declared its electrification roadmap in 2021. This will begin with an all-new, fully-electric car, called the Spectre, due in 2023. The company then plans to offer a fully-electric range of vehicles by 2030, entirely sidestepping plug-in hybrid technology.
This will bring an end to the company’s production of its iconic V12 engines, and likely means the new Ghost, revealed in 2020, will be the last new Rolls-Royce powered by internal combustion.
Toyota
30 electric cars due 2030
First dedicated EV, the bZ4X, due in 2022
(Image credit: Toyota)
Toyota also has plans to spend billions on electrification over the coming decade, with $35bn allocated to assist the roll-out of 30 new EVs between now and 2030. The company hopes to be producing 3.5 million EVs annually by the same year. As for its luxury Lexus division, Toyota hopes for 100 percent of sales in Europe, North America and China to be fully electric by 2030, and globally five years later.
Toyota has also been one of the biggest promoters of hydrogen fuel cell technology over the past several years. While plans aren’t clear, at the very least we should expect continual updates to the fuel cell-powered Mirai.
Volkswagen
25% electric sales by 2026,50% electric sales by 2030
100% electric sales by 2040
(Image credit: Tom’s Guide)
The Volkswagen Group is by far the biggest spender when it comes to electrification. Its brands include Volkswagen itself, but also Audi, Bentley, Porsche, Skoda, Cupra and Lamborghini.
Volkswagen says it wants a quarter of its car sales to be electric by 2026, then 50 percent to be battery-powered by 2030. It is aiming for almost 100 percent of its new vehicle sales to be electric by 2040, and for the company to be carbon neutral by 2050.
Volvo
Fully electric by 2030
(Image credit: Volvo)
One of the more progressive brands, Volvo says it plans to only sell fully-electric cars by 2030. Ahead of that, Volvo intends for half of its global car sales to be fully electric by 2025, with the rest being plug-in hybrids.
Sister-brand Polestar has recently discontinued its only hybrid, the Polestar 1, and will now only build and sell fully-electric cars, including the Polestar 2 and upcoming Polestar 3, 4 and 5.
Keyword: Which car companies are going electric and when? Everything we know so far