The traffic turnaround continues to pick up speed, new diesel registrations drop to a record low.
The car industry, including VW boss Diess, is in favor of an end to the combustion engine.
Düsseldorf - According to the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA), the share of new diesel registrations fell to a rate of 19.9 percent in June.
For the first time in decades, it is below the symbolically important mark of 20 percent.
Last year, the number of new diesel registrations was still 28 percent.
Is the combustion engine shutdown imminent?
The diesel car has long since passed its zenith.
The peak was reached in 2012 when the diesel share in Germany was almost 50 percent.
After that, sales stagnated.
The final downturn followed with the diesel scandal, which continues to weigh heavily on the German carmakers around Volkswagen (VW).
Now he is picking up speed.
Diesel: Germany's most important sales market
The most important sales markets for the diesel engine are still Germany and Europe.
The carmakers rely primarily on low consumption values and supposedly good exhaust gas values in order to reach customers.
In other countries, diesel plays a subordinate role.
In China and the USA it is mainly reserved for trucks, only in India diesel engines are still sold in significant numbers.
This means that the end of diesel engines should come even faster than petrol engines.
The reasons are many.
Last year the European Commission tightened the emission regulations further.
At the same time, diesel production was cut back, but German carmakers are increasingly relying on alternative drive options, but above all on electric vehicles.
Here they are in direct competition with Tesla, but have now made up a lot of ground to become the market leader.
Diesel market share: e-mobility accelerates the shutdown of combustion engines
Electric mobility has now dominated the strategic direction on the automotive market.
The gasoline engine is also feeling this, although the developments here are by no means as dramatic as with diesel.
The number of new gasoline registrations is relatively stable.
In June the quota was almost 40 percent of all newly registered cars.
The example of Volkswagen shows that manufacturers are now drawing conclusions from the developments.
For small cars, such as the Polo series, the technical effort required for exhaust gas cleaning is becoming too expensive: the price of small diesel cars is rising, and small diesel cars are becoming unattractive for customers.
The Polo has therefore already completely dispensed with the diesel engine.
Other small cars will soon follow suit.
VW: Diesel sales figures are halved
From 2019 to 2021, VW's sales figures for new cars with diesel engines halved. While 382,000 diesel cars were sold in the first half of 2019, there will be only 197,000 in 2021. So within two years there was a significant slump. Due to the economic effects of the corona pandemic, the figures for 2020 have only limited informative value. The decline is most noticeable in the VW Golf. While just under 77,000 Golf Diesel were sold in the first half of 2019, there will be only around 32,000 in 2021.
The decline is offset by company cars.
This is confirmed by a current study by the Deutsche Automobil Treuhand (DAT).
According to information from the market research company for the automotive industry, the proportion of this in company fleets is around 75 percent.
For jobs with a lot of mileage, such as employees in the field, the diesel is still attractive.
VW boss Diess calls for: "End of subsidies for fossil fuels"
At the same time, the state lures diesel drivers with hidden subsidies.
Thanks to the diesel discount at the petrol pumps, the household waives around eight billion euros annually.
(Super) petrol usually costs significantly more.
The reason for the discount was the low consumption values and the resulting environmental protection.
This diesel privilege is now also being questioned by the automotive industry. First and foremost, VW boss Herbert Diess tweeted: "Subsidies for remaining coal production and fossil fuels such as diesel should be eliminated." Not without ulterior motive, Diess wants above all to promote sales of the new VW electric cars from company cars with combustion engines must be terminated. " The diesel is therefore still on the decline. Above all, this is made clear by the goals that the automakers have set themselves. For example, Daimler intends to only sell electric automobiles with the original Mercedes-Benz brand by 2025. The farewell to the combustion engine could come even faster than the current figures show. * Merkur.de is an offer from IPPEN-MEDIA.