Small mercies: Aston, McLaren exempt from ZEV

Let’s get the bad news out the way first: the changes being made to the Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate will not alter the fundamental trajectory of the UK’s combustion engine phaseout. The vast majority will require some degree of electrification by 2030 and by 2035 (barring another seismic shift in the status quo) all will be gone from showrooms. But the government’s new plan – spurred on by the imposition of recently announced US tariffs and now framed as a part of a wider strategy to ‘back British business’ – does bring a significant silver lining to what was previously an ominously dark cloud. 

Most prominently for the readers of these pages is confirmation that ‘small and micro-volume manufacturers’ will be exempt from the mandated EV sales targets. McLaren and Aston Martin were specifically referred to in the government’s press release, although ongoing immunity from ZEV extends to any firm producing fewer than 2,500 cars per year, which means that a host of other British brands – Caterham, Morgan and Ariel among them – are spared the burden of electrifying their lineup ahead of 2035 in a way that would not be commercially sustainable. 

Indeed, ‘preserving some of the UK car industry’s most iconic jewels for years to come’ was cited as the primary reason for the decision, and while it doesn’t remove the obligation to move to a battery-powered solution eventually, those firms will doubtless appreciate the additional breathing room – and the solid footing it now puts their future development plans on. The makers (and buyers) of vans will be similarly pleased: those featuring internal combustion engines will also have a stay of execution, and remain on sale alongside hybrid and fully electric commercial vehicles until 2035. 

For higher volume manufacturers, 2030 remains a substantial speed bump, although the mandate’s framework has been revised to give firms ‘greater freedom on how to meet the target – easing pressure on industry’. Given ZEV’s abject failure to reflect (or predict) the state of the retail market, specifically the scale of demand for electric vehicles, the decision to allow the ongoing sale of hybrid cars until 2035 was likely an easy one to make. Characteristically short on technical detail (the government simply refers to the Toyota Prius and Nissan e-Power in passing) it remains even at this stage, yet the bar will evidently be set low enough to encompass hybrids that don’t require plugging in to charge their batteries. 

As you might expect, this will suit those mainstream manufacturers that have rediscovered an abiding interest in petrol-electric models (Bentley and Land Rover prominent among them) as well as earning the approval of customers apparently keener than ever to buy one. It is also useful in helping said carmakers to exceed their CO2 reduction targets, which in turn makes compliance with the updated ZEV mandate easier to achieve via the Non-Zero Emission Car CO2 Trading Scheme (CCTS). 

While firms are still ultimately heading toward an overall EV sales mix of 80 per cent by 2030, they will be given increased flexibility to miss their annual targets, providing they can make up the difference in subsequent years. Still a sticking plaster then, but a larger one thanks to longer timelines and reduced fines. The government might have gone much further still – last Friday the SMMT suggested that additional incentives were required to lift the battery electric market much beyond the best-ever 19.4% market share it recorded in March – but in his statement, the Prime Minister reiterated a wider political concern: “[These changes] will help ensure home-grown firms can export British cars built by British workers around the world and the industry can look forward with confidence, as well as back with pride.”