Autoblog

It looks as if the (very) heavy pressure coming from Germany with regard to the EU's proposed legislation to limit fleetwide automaker CO2 emissions is having an effect. Earlier drafts set a 130 g/km ceiling, which would seriously impact German automakers like Porsche, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz, all of which rely on the powerful vehicles in their product portfolios to make money. In new drafts, the flat limit has been replaced by a tiered approach favored by the Germans (Porsche specifically mentioned this alternative in its press release countering the silly Greenpeace protest in Zuffenhausen).

The alternate approach would set aggressive CO2 limits that would factor the car's weight into the final number. This is similar to what's done in Japan, and if adopted, might even hasten the sale of Jaguar and Land Rover. One of the reported holdups in that saga has been prospective buyer One Equity Partners LLC's concern over how new EU CO2 rules would impact the brands.

Until legislation passes, everything is subject to change, and there are people like MEP Chris Davies to contend with. Davies, you may remember, is the politician whose ridiculously overzealous, anti-car proposals include a ban on vehicles capable of going more than 100mph.

[Source: Telegraph.co.uk]