The Bureau of Energy Efficiency has come out with a revised draft of the CAFE 3 norms that proposes to make average CO2 emissions stringent from April 2027, but gives relief for sub-4 m petrol cars. The proposal seeks to incentivise electric vehicles and range-extender hybrid electric (REE) vehicles in the same way, while there are incentives for plug-in hybrid, strong hybrid and flex fuel vehicles.
The initial draft published last year proposed to reduce the average CO2 emission limit under CAFE 3 at WLTP (Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicle Test Procedure) to 91.7 g CO2/Km from 113 g CO2/Km under the current CAFÉ 2 norms. Under the newly revised draft proposal, the average CO₂ emission limit will be significantly reduced, starting at 88.4 g CO₂/km in the first year. This will be followed by a series of progressively tighter targets: 84.7 g, 81.9 g, 76.4 g, and 71.5 g in the following years. However, the new draft proposes that sub-4 m petrol vehicles can claim an additional reduction of 3.0 g CO₂/km in their manufacturer-declared CO₂ performance.
“Considering the limited potential for efficiency improvements in petrol vehicle models with an unladen mass up to 909 kg, engine capacity not exceeding 1200 cc and length not exceeding 4000 mm, said motor vehicle model ‘i’ shall be eligible to claim, in addition to certified technology-based savings, a further reduction of 3.0 g CO₂/km in its manufacturer-declared CO₂ performance (pi) for calculation of performance under CAFE 2027,” the draft said.
In a bid to promote the use of cleaner technology vehicles, the draft proposes a credit system that could help manufacturers to offset the impact of models with higher emissions by giving extra “weight” to electric, range extender hybrids, flex-fuel ethanol and strong hybrid vehicles. These credits are multipliers applied to vehicle types when calculating a manufacturer’s corporate average CO₂ performance.
As per the new draft, one battery electric vehicle and a range-extender hybrid electric vehicle will be counted as three vehicles in the fleet-average calculation. One plug-in hybrid electric vehicle or one strong hybrid electric vehicle will be counted as 2.5 vehicles, while one strong hybrid will be counted as 2 vehicles and one flex fuel ethanol will be counted as 1.5 vehicles.
A range extender in a vehicle is a small engine or generator used to recharge the battery or provide additional power when the battery runs low. Vehicles equipped with this technology run primarily on battery power and the small ICE or generator that kicks in only to recharge the battery when it gets low, not to directly power the wheels. However, in some architectures, vehicles with a range extender are designed in such a way that wheels can be driven by the motor as well as the engine.
The draft also proposes that manufacturers can form compliance pools of up to three OEMs. Each pool will be treated as a single entity for regulatory purposes, with its fleet-average CO₂ emissions calculated from the combined sales of all member companies. A designated pool manager will be responsible for any penalties if the group fails to meet the emission standards.
CAFE norms compel carmakers to increase the overall fuel efficiency of their entire fleet of vehicles, not just individual models. Automakers’ fuel emissions are measured by calculating the average grams of CO₂ emitted per kilometer across their entire fleet of vehicles. Rather than a per-car limit, these norms set a maximum for a manufacturer’s sales-weighted average CO₂ emissions.
This system pushes companies to produce and sell a mix of vehicles that includes more fuel-efficient options, such as electric vehicles and hybrids, to offset the higher emissions from larger, less-efficient models. Essentially, the more gas-guzzling vehicles a company sells, the more fuel-sipping or zero-emission cars it needs to sell to meet its required fleet-wide average.