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Danny Hopkins responds to the end of the ‘proper’ engine
Early in July, the French government announced plans to phase out diesel and petrol cars from 2040. Then BMW announced that a fully electric version of the MINI will be built at Cowley. So the government’s announcement that from 2040, sales of new cars with diesel and petrol engines will be banned, should come as no surprise.
It’s a line in the sand, but it is also a token. The real death of the internal combustion engine will happen well before then. I would be surprised if there are any major marques making fuel burners beyond the mid-2030s. As with all major technological advances, the biggest shift will happen as an evolutionary process.
We shouldn’t panic. As long as the government is seen to be tackling the problem of pollution at source then we can lobby hard to avoid knee jerk nonsense such as scrappage and draconian emissions zone car bans. I know that the Historic Vehicles Group in parliament and the FBHVC will be building on previous successes to do this. Shifting responsibility on to local authorities is one to watch though. It’s a typical tactic from a government that wants to avoid implementing a proper national strategy and the accountability that comes with it. Fighting headline grabbing stupidity at a local level is more difficult, but it isn’t impossible.
I think, if we continue to cherish our cars, they will still be on the road a hundred years from now. Perhaps not as daily drivers in inner cities, but certainly as fabulous examples of the history of social emancipation and engineering ingenuity. More than ever we need to demonstrate our passion for the road, by getting out there and using our classics. Keep calm and carry on driving.
‘It’s a line in the sand, but it is also a token’