Now in its 9th edition, T&E’s 2014 cars and CO2 report monitors the annual progress made by vehicle manufacturers to reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions of new cars.

If they continue their pace of progress made in the past six years, Volvo, Toyota, Peugeot-Citroen, Renault, Ford and Daimler will all hit their targets early while VW and Nissan are on schedule.

On the other hand, if they don’t accelerate their current rate of CO2 reduction Fiat would miss their target by one year (2022) and BMW by three years (2024).

Several Asian carmakers will have to increase their rate of progress because otherwise they will exceed their targets by several years: Suzuki (2023); Hyundai and Mazda (2025); Honda (2027). These companies have just announced a collaboration to improve the efficiency of engines by 30% by 2020.

T&E says its findings contradict claims by the German industry that premium car brands needed more time to meet the 95g of CO2/km target. It adds that: ‘The data shows that the ability of car brands to meet fuel efficiency standards resides in company strategies rather than the type and size of cars they produce.’

T&E clean vehicles manager Greg Archer said: ‘The report shows that most European carmakers are well positioned to hit their CO2 targets, irrespective of the size and type of vehicle they sell. Industry claims to the contrary have just been scaremongering. But some carmakers are beginning to lag behind and must raise their game to hit their targets.’