California Is Saying “Goodbye” to Gas-Powered Auto Sales

While California is known for things like Hollywood, Disneyland, and the Golden Gate Bridge, it’s soon to be known for a ban on new gasoline-fueled cars on all car dealerships across the state. Regulators agreed to ban the sale of gas-powered cars by the year 2035, and since The Golden State is the largest auto market in the country, other states could soon follow suit.

At the moment, there are 17 states that follow California’s car emission standards, so it’s not crazy to expect some of them to enact their own bans. If that were to happen, over 30% of the country would be living somewhere without new gas-powered vehicles for sale.

This move doesn’t necessarily mean gas-powered cars won’t exist at car dealerships on the west coast. The ban only prohibits the sale of brand-new gasoline-fueled vehicles after 2035. Drivers who already own gas cars will still be able to drive them. There’s also nothing in the act that necessarily prohibits someone from buying a gas car in another state and bringing it to California. You will also be able to buy gas-powered used cars.

Once the Environmental Protection Agency approves the new mandate, the act can officially go into practice. Starting in 2035, all new vehicles sold at California car dealerships will have to be electric, hydrogen-powered, or at least a plug-in hybrid. With PHEVs still on the road and plenty of grandfathered gas-powered cars in the state, there’s no reason to expect gas stations to disappear anytime soon.

California Governor Gavin Newsom is excited about the move to go green and decarbonize vehicles in the state. It will obviously be quite some time before gasoline vehicles are a thing of the past in California, but this mandate pushes California drivers in the right direction.

While there is only a handful of fully electric, hydrogen, and PHEVs on the market currently, the road will be full of them over the coming years. Many auto manufacturers have committed to increasing their research, development, and production of eco-friendly vehicles.

• Ford is investing $22 billion through 2035 toward its goal of being carbon-neutral by 2050
• General Motors plans to stop selling gas and diesel vehicles by 2035
• Cadillac plans to be all-electric by 2030
• Honda aims to phase out all gasoline-powered vehicles by 2040
• Hyundai invested $7.4 billion to produce more EVs in the U.S. by 2025
• Mazda is shooting to be carbon-neutral by 2050
• Stallantis is investing $35.5 billion in EV production be 2025
• Toyota hopes to be carbon-neutral by 2050
• The list goes on!

As investments in developing eco-friendly technology continue, the transition to electric and hydrogen vehicles will follow. California is taking the necessary steps to help encourage this transition. This may not mean the end of the gas-powered car available at car dealerships any time soon, but it certainly seems like we’re heading that way.