Difficult to find your way right now in the jungle of the automobile penalty. The scale has in fact already been changed since January 1. But a new version, which will further harden the device, is under study. This is to take into account the new European homologation standards.
In the meantime, motorists who wish to acquire a new vehicle are wondering: should we rush to the dealership now, before a possible price increase, or on the contrary wait a few months for the introduction of the new device? The answer lies in between, depending on the model.
Since 1 January, the scale of the ecological penalty has been tightened. With a trigger threshold lowered from 117 to 110 g of CO2 per kilometer (g / km), depending on the approval cycle, says NEDC, currently used throughout the European Union (EU). The amounts, applied in stages, have been raised. As a result, more cars now have to pay a penalty and it costs more.
Thus, the amount of the first level of tax (from 110 g / km therefore) has increased from 35 to 50 €: this is the tax that you pay in addition to the price of the vehicle when purchasing, for example, a Toyota Yaris 110 cv. All the other levels have also been modified and, at the end of the chain, the maximum amount has increased from € 10,500 beyond 191 g / km, to € 12,500 beyond 173 g / km. In the next version, it will even reach € 20,000 for the most polluting vehicles (beyond 184 g / km of CO2), such as the Ford Mustang.
New European homologation changes the game
Why change the bonus / penalty system again, and so quickly? To adapt it to the entry into force of the new vehicle approval cycle requested by the EU. Closer to the actual conditions of use, and therefore more demanding, this cycle, called WLTP (for “worldwide harmonized light vehicles test procedures”, in French), will necessarily cause vehicle emission levels to soar.
To compensate, it is therefore necessary to raise the various levels of the penalties, at the risk if not to cause an inflation of the number of models concerned and to increase their acquisition cost. The amounts will remain unchanged, but the CO2 emission levels will however be shifted upwards by 28 g / km. The new trigger threshold will be 138 g / km.
What consequences? Models that emit very little, if at all, CO2 (for 100% electric engines) will continue to be unaffected. Others will fall into the deep end of the penalty. Finally, for models already malussé, the tax may increase, or on the contrary be revised downwards.
French manufacturers: Peugeot wins, Renault loses
Take the case of Peugeot. The PureTech 130 horsepower (cv) version of its 2008, hitherto unaffected, will be subject to a penalty of € 100. The 155 hp version will drop from 150 to 100 €. For its part, the 308, another large commercial box of the brand, remains neutral before and after. With the exception of its GTI version, which will drop from € 3,331 in penalties to € 2,370. It is therefore better to wait before offering this sports version (263 hp). Many models from other brands of the PSA group (Citroën, DS) are also affected.
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Renault is not so lucky. The fault lies in technological choices in terms of pollution control, which are less costly but much less effective. All the models concerned (Scenic, Koléos or Espace) will undergo an increase in their penalty. If one of these models interests you, it is better not to delay before buying it.
Implementation delayed until July
According to our information, the implementation of the new version of the device, scheduled for March 1, should be delayed. The government plans to postpone it for several months. "Probably July, as authorized by the Finance Law, confirms a government source. It is a big gas plant to set up and the services are not ready. "
The government is also under intense lobbying from automakers. The latter indeed see a very bad eye this increase in the selling prices of their cars. "The hunt for CO2, wanted by the European Union, already costs us millions of euros in research and development," says one of them. Without making a bad pun, we too must let ourselves breathe. When contacted, the Ministry of Ecological Transition did not wish to answer our questions.