Registration of new diesel cars and taxis to cease by 2025

The diesel engine is dead - or at least it will soon be, for new cars and taxis in Singapore.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has announced that the registration of new diesel cars and taxis in Singapore is set to cease from 1 January 2025.

Registration of diesel-powered commercial vehicles, such as the Peugeot Partner Diesel (pictured), will still be allowed when 2025 swings around

The news follows up on an earlier announcement during the 2021 Committee of Supply, during which Mr. Ong Ye Kung, then the Minister for Transport, had touched upon questions concerning the Singapore Green Plan 2030.

The discontinuation of registrations for new diesel cars and taxis comes as Singapore works towards its vision for all vehicles to run on cleaner energy by 2040. Notably, while electric commercial vehicles are becoming more commonplace now, the impending regulations do not cover diesel-powered commercial vehicles. 

While enthusiasts may lament the loss of diesel cars - which are generally more torquey and provide better mileage than their petrol-powered counterparts - the LTA notes that market demand for them has effectively thinned out to negligible levels.

With hybrids and electric vehicles (EVs) now readily available (and within the taxi scene too), diesel cars and taxis have taken up less than 1% of new registrations since 2021.

The last diesel-powered passenger car model that Sgcarmart reviewed was the Kia Carnival Diesel, back in 2021. The model is no longer sold by authorised dealer Cycle & Carriage 

It should come as no surprise that diesel cars are now rarely sold by authorised dealers (ADs). With commercial vehicles removed from the equation, the last time Sgcarmart reviewed a diesel passenger car was in 2021, when the Kia Carnival Diesel landed in Singapore.

At the time of writing, Sgcarmart's listings also indicated that the only two diesel-powered passenger car models to be sold by ADs were the Ssangyong Tivoli Diesel (although its listing indicates 'price on application'), as well as the the BMW ALPINA XD3 Diesel, sold by BIS Automobiles.

Alongside diesel-powered variants of the Land Rover Defender 90 and 110, diesel-powered variants of Mercedes-Benz heavyweights, including the previous-generation E-Class, S-Class, GLE and GLE Coupe, are also still available today - but are sold solely parallel importers.

The Ssangyong Tivoli Diesel (petrol-variant pictured) is only one of two AD-sold diesel models still listed on Sgcarmart (correct at press time)

Fret not if you want to hang onto your diesel cars post-2025; owners of such cars registered before 1 January 2025 will still be allowed to renew their COEs, although the LTA is quick to add that these "will be subject to higher road taxes as a disincentive to discourage renewal".

Another point of relief: The effective ban on new diesel cars and taxis will not apply to the import and registration of cars under the Classic Vehicle Scheme and Vintage Vehicle Scheme.