Europe’s biggest annual car show kicks off in Geneva on Tuesday with luxury and crossover vehicles in the limelight, but with the emissions scandal still hanging over the industry.
Automakers are celebrating the end of the sector’s crisis as European sales have returned to levels last seen in 2008 before a global financial meltdown inflicted deep dents on their business.
While Volkswagen has survived the crisis, the scandal has focused attention on emissions and the challenges automakers will have in building cars that can meet ever tougher pollution rules.
Carmakers are now having to steer toward engines that emit no more than 95 grams of CO2 per kilometre by 2021 to meet European requirements, compared to 130 grams in 2015.
But as diesel cars have been getting a bad rap because of emissions scandals, that target looks harder to meet.
“Diesel cars emit 15 percent less CO2 per kilometre” than gasoline-fuelled models, said Christophe Aufrere, a technology strategist at car parts maker Faurecia.