According to BBC News, the European Commission of the EU wants to slap mandatory efficiency standards on all new vehicles sold in Europe as part of a plan to combat climate change. Originally, european car makers made deals with the EU to voluntary comply with the standards but they have missed the target by--gasp!--almost 50 percent.
As a result, the Environmental Commission wants mandatory standards that will permit an average car to emit just 120 grams of carbon dioxide per kilometre. That would mean that a Ford Focus with a 1.6 liter gas engine would have to cut emissions by one third. Some say that the regulation will add as much as 2,500 euros ($3227) to the cost of some cars. While the commission will allow automakers to average out their overall carbon dioxide targets over the entire range of their models, makers of luxury cars like the Rolls Royce, Bentley, and Range Rover will struggle and have to invest a lot of money to get their emissions in line with the smaller cars. (Pictured is a Bentley Continental GTC. Beautiful, fast, expensive, and a gas-guzzler, polluting lux machine.)
Our take? We know the Detroit Three are watching closely since the U.S. government is, too, looking at similar bills.