Mercedes vehicles might be banned in several EU countries
Only to the uninitiated might the EU seem like a gathering of very like-minded entities, but only at a quick glance you’ll notice that the various countries don’t always see eye to eye in regards to various matters, and the German carmaker Mercedes-Benz might just be at the forefront of such issues.
Even if it produces cars in the EU and for the European market, several of the EU nations might join France who recently banned the sale of certain Mercedes-Benz vehicles that contain a prohibited refrigerant.
According to a report from Reuters, the European Commission has confirmed on Tuesday that the Mercedes-Benz vehicles that contain refrigerant R134a – a compound banned for sale in the EU from the start of 2013 – thus affirming France’s earlier decision to block registrations of vehicles using the substance.
The French government has banned the sale of Mercedes-Benz A-Class, B-Class and SL-Class vehicles produced from July after Daimler refused to stop using the R134a chemical.
Yesterday, representatives from each EU members states – and this includes Germany – met in Brussels in order to discuss the issue and have agreed that no vehicles should be exempt from regulations.
According to a statement from the European Commission, the member states acknowledged that when it comes to regarding the vehicles which do not conform with EU law, then corrective measures shall be taken to bring said vehicles into conformity including the withdrawal of those cars already sold on the market, just as it has already been done by a member state.
Let’s talk a bit about this banned refrigerant to get a better understanding of what it does. The R134a contributes to global warming and is a thousand times more damaging to the atmosphere than carbon dioxide. All other European carmakers have made a switch to a replacement substance, HFO-1234yf. Daimler on the other hand believes that HFO-1234yf poses an increased fire risk and also we have to mention that the German government has not yet enforced the EU ban on the carmaker.
The German government has until August 20 to either reverse their decision or explain their reasoning of not enforcing the ban.
