Automakers See Future for Fuel-Burning Cars With EU Ban in Doubt

Several European automakers and their suppliers are preparing to give cars with a combustion engine a new lease on life, based on expectations that the European Union will walk back its planned ban of the technology, according to people familiar with the matter.

Parts makers are hearing from manufacturers that they should be ready to move forward with non-EV models for Europe beyond the EU’s 2035 deadline, the people said, declining to be named because the talks aren’t public. Carmaker plans take shape years ahead of a model leaving the factory, with billions of euros at stake in mapping out the shift toward cleaner drivetrains.