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This week at COP26, a number of nations and automakers agreed to target 100% zero-emission new car and van sales globally by 2040.

But 2040 is not only too late to reach our climate goals based on scientific consensus, it’s also a pathetic, low-effort commitment based on simple math.

30 countries joined the agreement, including the world’s second-most populous (and soon to be most populous) country, India. As did six automakers – Ford, GM, BYD, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, and Jaguar Land Rover.

But there were a number of notable absences from the signatures. Major automaking nations like Germany, Japan, China, and the US were absent from the agreement (though some US states and the largest Chinese automaker both signed on). And plenty of large manufacturers were not included – the omission of Toyota and most other Japanese manufacturers was not a surprise, but Hyundai, Kia, and the Renault-Nissan alliance were notable absences from companies that have reasonably good new and upcoming electric vehicle offerings.

Even Voltswagen, which has been the loudest of incumbent manufacturers about its electric vehicle ambitions, was missing from the agreement.

Each individual entity may have its own reasons for not signing, so we can’t address each one of those reasons here. But we can show that not only is the 2040 timeline weak, but a 2035 timeline is both necessary and easy to achieve.

Science says 2035 is necessary

Earlier this year, the International Energy Agency released a roadmap detailing the path to net-zero carbon emissions globally by 2050. You can read the full report here.

Why 2050? Because that’s what will keep us in line with a global temperature rise of <1.5ºC, which is necessary to avoid the worst of the climate emergency we find ourselves in. This is the goal of the Paris Agreement and of COP26, the conference where the 2040 agreement was reached. So, by the goals of the conference, 2040 is already too late.

In IEA’s report, it details many steps that need to be taken, including that the world needs to stop investing in new fossil fuel projects this year, that new car sales must be 60% electric by 2030, and that all new passenger car sales must be electric by 2035 – not 2040.

There are other appeals in the IEA report, which we won’t cover all of in this article, but the net cost/benefit of all of these plans would result in over 2 million lives saved and 0.4% additional global GDP growth per year. So clearly, working to implement these plans and invest properly in a cleaner future will bring broad benefits to the world, and these benefits will be larger the sooner we act, and these steps are necessary to avoid spiraling environmental damage.

Math says 2035 is easy

But surely this will take a lot of hard work, right? It’s gotta be hard to shift all vehicle models over to electric instead of gasoline by 2035? Well, no, not really. And it just takes some simple math to show it.

A common rule of thumb in the auto industry is that a car model cycle will last about 5-7 years, give or take, before a significant “refresh.” And that car model will go from inception to production in about 5-7 years as well.

If we took every vehicle model on the road today and let them run to the “natural” end of their cycle, and we don’t make any changes to the current road map of all vehicles currently being worked on by all automakers, then we can still successfully make 2035 the year that the last gas vehicle is sold to consumers.

Any automaker that was dumb enough to start the design process of a new gas-powered vehicle this year can still spend the full 5-7 years designing that vehicle before launch (2021-2028), and then spend the full 5-7 years selling that vehicle through the end of its model cycle (2028-2035). Even at just that natural rate, it would still be right on the edge of the 2035 deadline.

2021 + 7 + 7 = 2035. That’s it. Simple math.

So 2035 is “free.” It’s an easy win, completely up for grabs. Anyone can take it with a modicum of effort. Just say that all current ICE projects will continue until their natural end date, and no new ICE projects will be started. Nobody on any project, anywhere within the country, needs to have their project changed before its already-planned natural end date. And the IEA’s target can still be hit without even trying. So just do it already.

Heck, if automakers were smart enough to see all of this coming, then they should have stopped greenlighting new ICE cars years ago already (as Daimler, the inventor of the internal combustion engine, already did). It should have been very apparent, at least as early as ~2014 when the Tesla Model S started eating into sales of every competing vehicle and even more so when the Model 3 came out, that electric cars are the way to go.

Besides – it’s (almost) already been done

To those who still think it’s impossible for this to happen, we must remind you that it’s (basically) already been done.

Norway has been targeting 2025 for all-EV sales, and yet already, in 2021, new ICE car sales have virtually vanished in the country. The majority of new cars are electric-only, over 80% have a plug, and all but <10% have some sort of electrified powertrain. Trends show these numbers continuing to improve.

The main things holding them back from close to 100% EV sales are a few niche applications and greater availability/variety of electric vehicle models. Given the math above, 14 years should be more than enough time to solve those problems – even if we only started today.

Several other regions have committed to earlier dates, and we think it’s likely that many of these regions will do as Norway has done and virtually eliminate gas car sales well before the deadlines they’ve committed to. When consumers see the writing on the wall, they’ll think twice before hanging a gas-powered albatross around their neck, which will inevitably suffer from high depreciation and difficult refueling as gas pumps are replaced with chargers.

And we do think that it’s better to overshoot a goal than undershoot it. When standout regions like California and the European Union set a weak 2035 deadline, we wonder: “why not sooner?”

But globally, even laggard regions should be able to hit a 2035 goal, and per the IEA, we have to hit that 2035 goal if we are to avoid the worst of the climate emergency. Leader regions (and manufacturers) can and should set earlier timelines than 2035.

So – let’s do it

There are plenty of other points we could address here about consumer demand, technology, trends, production investments, EV satisfaction, convenience, etc. Here at Electrek, we do address those points daily in our articles, but each of those points is secondary.

What matters is that we have to do it, according to science, in order to avoid the worst of the climate emergency. We also can do it, according to math, based on already-established norms of the entire auto industry. We don’t even need to change any current plans for any vehicle line in order to reach the goal!

So: let’s do it. Set a global end-date for gas car sales of 2035 at the latest, get all manufacturers and countries onboard. Advanced regions can do better, in the 2025-2030 time frame. Let’s leave fossil cars behind. It’s time.


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Russell Brand charged with rape and sexual assault

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Russell Brand charged with rape and sexual assault

Russell Brand has been charged with rape and two counts of sexual assault between 1999 and 2005.

The Metropolitan Police say the 50-year-old comedian, actor and author has also been charged with one count of oral rape and one count of indecent assault.

The charges relate to four women.

He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday 2 May.

Police have said Brand is accused of raping a woman in the Bournemouth area in 1999 and indecently assaulting a woman in the Westminster area of London in 2001.

He is also accused of orally raping and sexually assaulting a woman in Westminster in 2004.

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Ashna Hurynag discusses Russell Brand’s charges

The fourth charge alleges that a woman was sexually assaulted in Westminster between 2004 and 2005.

Police began investigating Brand, from Oxfordshire, in September 2023 after receiving a number of allegations.

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The comedian has denied the accusations and said he has “never engaged in non-consensual activity”.

He added in a video on X: “Of course, I am now going to have the opportunity to defend these charges in court, and I’m incredibly grateful for that.”

Metropolitan Police Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy, who is leading the investigation, said: “The women who have made reports continue to receive support from specially trained officers.

“The Met’s investigation remains open and detectives ask anyone who has been affected by this case, or anyone who has any information, to come forward and speak with police.”

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Tom Cruise leads moment of silence in tribute to ‘dear friend’ Val Kilmer

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Tom Cruise leads moment of silence in tribute to 'dear friend' Val Kilmer

Tom Cruise has paid tribute to Val Kilmer, wishing his Top Gun co-star “well on the next journey”.

Cruise, speaking at the CinemaCon film event in Las Vegas on Thursday, asked for a moment’s silence to reflect on the “wonderful” times shared with the star, whom he called a “dear friend”.

Kilmer, who died of pneumonia on Tuesday aged 65, rocketed to fame starring alongside Cruise in the 1986 blockbuster Top Gun, playing Tom ‘Iceman’ Kazansky, a rival fighter pilot to Cruise’s character Maverick.

Tom Cruise, star of the upcoming film "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning," leads a moment of silence for late actor Val Kilmer during the Paramount Pictures presentation at CinemaCon at Caesars Palace on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
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Tom Cruise said ‘I wish you well on the next journey’. Pic: AP

Val Kilmer in 2017. Pic: AP
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Val Kilmer in 2017. Pic: AP

His last part was a cameo role in the 2022 blockbuster sequel Top Gun: Maverick.

Cruise, on stage at Caesars Palace on Thursday, said: “I’d like to honour a dear friend of mine, Val Kilmer. I can’t tell you how much I admire his work, how grateful and honoured I was when he joined Top Gun and came back later for Top Gun: Maverick.

“I think it would be really nice if we could have a moment together because he loved movies and he gave a lot to all of us. Just kind of think about all the wonderful times that we had with him.

“I wish you well on the next journey.”

The moment of silence followed a string of tributes from Hollywood figures including Cher, Francis Ford Coppola, Antonio Banderas and Michelle Monaghan.

Kilmer’s daughter Mercedes told the New York Times on Wednesday that the actor had died from pneumonia.

Tom Cruise takes part in the Paramount Pictures presentation at CinemaCon at Caesars Palace on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
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Tom Cruise at Caesars Palace on Thursday. Pic: AP

Diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, Kilmer discussed his illness and recovery in his 2020 memoir Your Huckleberry and Amazon Prime documentary Val.

He underwent radiation and chemotherapy treatments for the disease and also had a tracheostomy which damaged his vocal cords and permanently gave him a raspy speaking voice.

Kilmer played Batman in the 1995 film Batman Forever and received critical acclaim for his portrayal of rock singer Jim Morrison in the 1991 movie The Doors.

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He also starred in True Romance and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, as well as playing criminal Chris Shiherlis in Michael Mann’s 1995 movie Heat and Doc Holliday in the 1993 film Tombstone.

In 1988 he married British actress Joanne Whalley, whom he met while working on fantasy adventure Willow.

The couple had two children before divorcing in 1996.

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Bruce Springsteen: The Boss to release seven ‘lost’ albums

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Bruce Springsteen: The Boss to release seven 'lost' albums

Bruce Springsteen is to release seven albums of mostly unheard material this summer.

The US singer said the songs, written and re-recorded between 1983 and 2018, were being made public after he began completing “everything I had in my vault” during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a short video posted on Instagram, Springsteen said the albums were “records that were full records, some of them even to the point of being mixed and not released”.

The 83-song collection is being released in a box set called Tracks II: The Lost Albums and goes on sale on 27 June.

Some 74 of the tracks have never been heard before.

Springsteen first teased the release on Wednesday morning with a short social media video accompanied by text which said: “What was lost has been found”.

Tracks II is the follow-up to the star’s first Tracks volume, a four-CD collection of 66 unreleased songs, released in 1998.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 26, 2025: Bruce Springsteen took the stage at Carnegie Hall for People Have the Power: A Celebration of Patti Smith, an electrifying tribute to the legendary artist. The event, presented by Michael Dorf, honored Smiths profound impact on music, poetry, and activism, bringing together an all-star lineup to perform her most iconic songs. (Photo: Giada Papini Rampelotto/EuropaNewswire). Photo by: Giada Papini Rampelotto/EuropaNewswire/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images
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Bruce Springsteen at New York’s Carnegie Hall at a tribute to Patti Smith last month. Pic: PA

The New Jersey-born rocker, nicknamed The Boss, last released a studio album in 2022.

Only the Strong Survive was a collection of covers, including songs by Motown and soul artists, such as the Four Tops, The Temptations, The Supremes, Frankie Wilson and Jimmy Ruffin.

The late soul legend Sam Moore, who died in January and was a frequent Springsteen collaborator, sang on two of the tracks.

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Springsteen is coming to the UK in May to launch a two-month tour of Europe with his E Street Band.

The shows will include performances at the Co-op Live in Manchester and Liverpool’s Anfield stadium.

The singer-songwriter has sold more than 140 million records since his debut on the music scene in 1973, according to his website.

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