DÜSSELDORF (dpa-AFX) - According to a survey, gasoline-powered cars are once again enjoying increasing popularity. In a Forsa survey of motorists commissioned by Targobank, 30 percent of respondents said they would give priority to a car with a gasoline engine if they were buying one. A year earlier, this figure was still at 22 percent.

At the same time, the popularity of hybrid cars is declining: 18 percent (down 4 percentage points) can currently imagine choosing such a drive system. The desire for purely electric vehicles also declined: for 16 percent (minus 1 percentage point), a purely electric drive would be an option. The popularity of diesel powertrains has declined since 2019 and now stands at 10 percent of respondents. A fuel cell car would be preferred by 6 percent. The rest are undecided.

The survey also found that the environmentally friendly image of electric vehicles has been steadily declining since 2016. For example, only 39 percent of respondents now consider e-cars to be more environmentally friendly across the board than cars with internal combustion engines (down 5 percentage points compared to 2022). According to the "Auto Study," the reservations against e-cars are partly based on sustainability aspects: 57 percent criticize the environmental impact of the batteries, 49 percent their limited service life. 63 percent cite the inadequate charging station network as an argument against buying an e-car, while 66 percent say the range is too short. For 64 percent, the purchase price is an argument against an e-car./tob/DP/he