Diesel loses 20% market share in the Netherlands

In the first six months of 2018, the market share of diesel-powered passenger cars dropped 20% in the Netherlands, going from 17.6% in 2017 to 14.2% this year, reports Automotive Management based on RDC figures.

During the same period, the market share of full-electric vehicles doubled from 1.4%% to 3.1%.

Other drivetrains, including petrol (75.8% to 76.6%) staid relatively stable.

The number of vehicles registered in the Netherlands rose with 12.1% over last year.

This decrease in diesel-powered car registrations follows a wider European trend but it does raise questions about how low diesel will continue to drop before levelling off.

A number of car manufacturers (inclunding Toyota, Nissan, Volvo, FCA) have announced plans to stop the development of diesel engines, but there are plenty of other (including Volkswagen, Daimler) that continue to believe in a future for diesel. Earlier this year, Bosch announced a new technology that dramatically cuts NOx emissions.

Image: Tesla store in Amsterdam