New VW Diesels can cut CO2 emissions by up to 95% with Paraffinic Fuel

Volkswagen may be heading down the road of becoming a producer of electric cars with its ever-growing range of ID models but, despite probably being single-handedly responsible for the demise of diesel-engined cars with Dieselgate, it’s not giving up on oil-burners quite yet.

Paradoxically, diesel-engined cars have become far cleaner since Diselgate, and still offer high-mileage drivers an economical way of getting around, but the backlash from Dieselgate has seen sales drop from around 50 per cent of new cars pre-Dieslegate to just five per cent now.

But despite all that, VW still sees a future for diesel-engined cars and has announced that all VWs with a four-pot diesel made since June this year can now run on Paraffinic Fuel, potentially reducing CO2 emissions by up to 95 per cent.

Paraffinic Fuels are made from biological waste, like hydro-treated vegetable oil (HVO), and other fuels – like Power-to-Liquid – will be offered in future.

Prof. Thomas Garbe, Head of VW Fuels, said “Through the use of environmentally friendly fuels in the approved Volkswagen models, we are making it possible for customers throughout Europe to significantly reduce their CO2 emissions as soon as the fuel is locally available.

“For example, the use of paraffinic fuels is a sensible additional option particularly for companies with a mixed fleet made up of models with electric and conventional drives.”

The maximum benefit comes from using waste oils – like used cooking oil – and although availability is still scarce, VW reckons it could account for 20-30 per cent of the energy market in Europe in the next decade.