AUTOMOTIVE HDDO
Euro VI commercial vehicles: Reshaping lubricant demand in Europe
European commercial vehicle emissions standards The commercial transportation industry continues to evolve toward cleaner vehicles. In Europe, Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) have been on a journey to increase the cleanliness and efficiency of their powertrains since the first EURO emissions standard came into effect in 1992.
Lubricant market dynamics are driven by the underlying vehicle parc, with changes to hardware influencing demand. Often, there is a delayed impact for new regulations and new hardware designs to take effect. Understanding these market trends and the speed of change is key for industry stakeholders as they seek to prepare and adapt for changes to their portfolios.
The latest emissions standard for on-road equipment in the commercial vehicle space is Euro VI step E. This standard ensures that the latest trucks and buses on European roads are some of the cleanest in the world. Euro VI is a European emission standard that establishes limits for tailpipe emissions such as nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulate matter (PM), and particulate number (PN). European OEMs must design and produce vehicles with powertrains that meet these requirements.
Alex Brewster, Product Manager, Commercial Engine Lubricants, Lubrizol
The delayed impact on the market Although standard came into force in 2014, it has taken quite some time to have a significant impact in the market. This is due to the refresh rate of the vehicle parc in Europe. The average age of an on-highway truck is 14.2 years old, with the total number of medium and heavy commercial vehicles on European roads standing at 6.4 million vehicles. The average age of a bus is 12.7 years old, with the number of buses totaling more than 700,000 [1]. Buses are a much smaller subset of the commercial vehicle parc than their medium and heavy commercial vehicle counterparts. Additionally, lubricant demand from these vehicles tends to be disproportionately smaller, as sump sizes and mileage accumulation are comparatively lower.
In 2022, medium and heavy commercial vehicle production was 299,917 units, with buses totaling 28,376 units [2]. Comparing this to the overall parc, it becomes clear that the impact of new vehicle production on the existing fleet is steady and gradual, taking years to tip the balance of the vehicle parc. Put another way, the true potential environmental impact of Euro VI is softened by the high proportion of older vehicles that are still in circulation. For instance, eight years after Euro VI, pre-Euro VI trucks still account for three-quarters of the total trucks on EU roads as well as 92% of NOx emissions [3].
https://360.lubrizol.com/Categories/Euro-7/Euro-7-The-Evolution-of-Emission-Legislation-in-Europe Continued on page 24 LUBE MAGAZINE NO.177 OCTOBER 2023 23
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