Hyundai To Stop Petrol/Diesel Sales In Europe By 2035. India By 2040?

At the ongoing Munich Motor Show (IAA), where the ongoing theme seems to be clean mobility, Hyundai has announced that it will offer only zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) in Europe from 2035 onwards. It will follow it up by switching over to these ZEVs by 2040 in all major markets that support clean mobility.

While Hyundai has explicitly revealed its plan to introduce ZEVs in Europe, it has signalled that 2040 could be the last we see any of its petrol or diesel vehicles in India. This is because India is a major market for automobile manufacturers (it was the fifth-largest market in 2020 according to IBEF*), and as a country, our policies are geared towards the introduction of ZEVs in the market. 

In fact, we wouldn’t be surprised if the switch over to ZEVs happens much before 2040, alongside developed nations like the US and other countries in Europe.

As far as the tech these ZEVs use, Hyundai is working on a couple of ideas. First and foremost, a battery electric vehicle (BEV) is one of the options. These are traditional electric vehicles like the Kona EV that store their energy in a battery to power an electric motor. Hyundai revealed its dedicated EV platform eGMP in 2020, and it already underpins the IONIQ 5, and will also underpin the upcoming IONIQ 6. IONIQ is Hyundai’s sub-brand catered around BEVs.

Hyundai has also been focusing on using hydrogen as a fuel, and as such is banking heavily on fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs). These are essentially electric vehicles which use hydrogen to produce electricity and power the car’s electric motors. The combustion process is completely emission free, and the only resulting product that is of no use is water.  

Hyundai has been in the hydrogen game longer than it has been in the BEV game. The ix35, launched in 2013, was the first mass-produced FCEV from Hyundai. The Nexo, launched in 2018, is another SUV which uses hydrogen for its propulsion needs. Hyundai had even announced in 2019 that they were contemplating bringing the Nexo to India, and it has even been registered with the Delhi RTO. Hyundai has big plans going forward, including a full-size hydrogen-propelled SUV in 2025. 

And finally, we expect both these technologies to be offered in India in the medium- to long-term future.