A recent NY Times article (subscription required) describing the most recent Frankfurt Show highlights the “angst” at this year’s show among industry insiders concerning the future of the automotive business. Trade issues, declining global sales, environmental challenges, and the large investments required for electric vehicle and autonomous driving development are all discussed as major challenges facing the industry. One particularly striking comment came from Markus Schäfer, the head of research and development at Daimler. Schäfer stated that Mercedes has no plans to develop more internal combustion engines after completing a four cylinder engine currently under development. “That is the last,” Mr. Schäfer said. Does this represent the beginning of the end for the internal combustion engine?
Is the Internal Combustion Engine Dead?
