Currently reading: Car makers extend life of combustion engines amid EV hangover

After the Tesla-fuelled elation of 2021, many car makers are now relaxing plans to drop combustion engines

The spike in Tesla’s share prices in 2021 – eventually valuing the electric car maker past one trillion dollars – triggered an unprecedented wave of optimism towards EVs among the boardrooms of global car companies.

With the financial markets rewarding bold strategies that involved an early exit from combustion engines, car companies were happy to set bold targets. 

Brands including BentleyCadillacFord, LexusMercedes-Benz, Vauxhall and Volvo all laid out plans to go electric-only within the decade, either globally or within the more promising-looking markets, such as Europe.

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