Global auto engineers, developers and manufacturers including experts along the chains in the auto industry are gathered in Paris, France from Monday October 17 to Sunday 23, 2022 for Mondial de l’Auto Paris.
Mondial de l’Auto Paris is simply an international car show taking place at the Parc des Expositions de la Porte de Versailles. It was previously planned for 2020 but was canceled due to the covid-19 pandemic breakout then.
French President Emmanuel Macron formally opened the 2022 ‘Mondial de l’Auto’ international car show backing plans for more electric cars.
“We want to make the electric car accessible to all,” Macron said, adding that in his country, some families will be given up to €7,000 to assist them to purchase cars which cost less than €47,000.
He also outlined a scheme, due to start next year, which would give some households the chance to lease an electric car for €100 a month.
Europe is leading the push into battery-powered cars as electric vehicles enter the mainstream.Only Germany boasts stronger sales of electric cars than France.
The organisers of the week-long exhibition, which first opened its doors in 1898, are hoping for between 300,000 and 400,000 visitors this year. During the last edition in 2018, one million people toured the stands at the show.
Here are major themes from the Paris show, which is open to visitors Tuesday through Sunday at the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles exhibition center:
ELECTRIC FIRST
Cars with an electric motor made up 41% of sales in the second quarter in Europe, with 9.9% battery-only cars and the rest hybrids that combine electric power with internal combustion, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association.
Gains have come because of regulatory pressure, tax breaks, improving battery range, and a wider range of vehicles to purchase.
“The electric revolution is in full swing,” wrote analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein research firm. “Car manufacturers are finally pivoting to electric vehicles and consumers are buying every electric vehicle they can find.”
Bernstein analysts say electric cars are “no longer a niche” and that “Europe will likely lead the way” due to tough emissions requirements.
By 2025, a quarter of all cars sold worldwide will likely be battery-only or hybrids that combine internal combustion with electric motors, they forecast.
Uptake has been slower in China, where the higher cost of producing electric cars leave them beyond the purchasing power of many consumers despite government incentives.
Battery and hybrid cars were 13.8% of the market for all of 2021. In the U.S., regulatory pressure from government emissions requirements has waxed or waned depending on whether a Republican or a Democrat is in the White House. The electric share was around 4.5% in 2021.
At the Paris show, electrics are now the rule among major unveilings. They include Stellantis’ STLA, +2.78% battery-powered Jeep Avenger small SUV and the Peugeot 408 plug-in hybrid, while Renault has an electric version of its Kangoo small van and a rugged-looking SUV concept car dubbed the 4Ever Trophy.
Mercedes-Benz unveiled its EQE crossover at an off-site event at the Rodin Museum on the eve of the show.
There’s still a long way to go before 2035, when the European Union bans carbon-dioxide emissions from autos, effectively mandating all new cars be electric. It’s part of the EU’s push to meet its commitments under the 2015 Paris climate accords.
