Is there still a case for the internal combustion engine after 2035? That highly political question is now hanging over Brussels, and a new analysis asks whether BMW has found the answer. The starting point is the EU’s CO2 regulation, which as written requires that new cars on the market emit 0 g of CO2 per kilometre in use from 2035 onward. That wall, however, is already lower than it looks: as EastAutoNews has reported, the EU has since agreed to an 87.5% CO2 cut instead of a full 100%, softening the zero-emission endpoint of the original rule.
BMW’s opening comes from the political deal-making around that rule. On 16 October 2026, France and Germany reached a political agreement linking stricter “Made in Europe” requirements for the automotive sector with more flexible EU car emissions rules. Emissions ambition, in other words, is being traded against industrial policy — and that trade is precisely where a case for preserving combustion technology can be argued.
The local-content side of the bargain is already taking shape. Under the EU’s “Made in Europe” plan, cars imported from Japan would not qualify for EU subsidies, while models built in France, Portugal and Eastern Europe would benefit only if enough of their parts come from Europe. For the region’s plants, that is both an opportunity and a condition: Eastern European-built vehicles stand to gain, but only to the extent that their supply chains stay European.
Whether all of this amounts to a genuine lifeline for combustion engines remains unresolved — the question is still political rather than technical. But with the 2035 target already watered down and flexibility now explicitly on the negotiating table, the space for engines built in Europe, from European parts, to outlive the deadline could be wider than at any time since the rule was set. For Eastern Europe’s automotive base, the stakes are concrete: which powertrains its factories build, and which models remain on its forecourts, deep into the next decade.
For buyers and dealers, the practical question is simpler than the politics: which vehicles will be available, and at what price, as the rules keep shifting. Until the dust settles, comparing offers across the European market remains the smartest move. Those looking for a vehicle will find sensational cars at sensational conditions at WorldTrader24, Europe’s marketplace with over 70,000 vehicles.
