In 2001 the number of registered vehicles in Turkey was 8.5 million with an average increase of 1 million vehicles per year. However, in 2022 that number exceeded 25 million, corresponding to a 3-fold increase. Nearly half of the registered vehicles are passenger cars with a share of 56%; the rest of the registered vehicles include 17% commercial vans, 15% motorbikes, 8% agricultural tractors, 2% mini-buses, and 2% buses. Despite the incentives provided by the Government to replace the old and fuel-inefficient vehicles with the new ones, the average age is 14.5 years which is rather high. The oldest vehicles are agricultural tractors with an average of 24.3 years. The passenger cars are slightly younger than the average at 13.6 years.
The majority of the small passenger cars are either locally made or locally assembled in Turkey by using imported kits. However, most of the vehicles with large engines are imported.
Since all commercial vehicles have diesel engines, diesel fuel consumption is far more than gasoline and LPG. In 2021, 32 million m3 of diesel, 3.9 million m3 of gasoline, and 3.2 million tons of LPG were consumed in the country. 2022 figures are expected to be around these levels.
There is no EV production in Turkey at the moment, however, with the push of the Government, a group of investors is erecting an EV production line near Istanbul.
Recently incentives make imported EVs expensive for EV buyers. The reason behind this change is rumored to be the support for the local EVs expected to be on the road in mid-2023. The local EV is mostly locally designed, and the brand name is TOGG.
The number of hybrid and electric cars is 61,000 and 7,700 respectively. The projection for EVs in 2030 is to reach 1,000,000.
The total CO2 emission in Turkey is around 500 million equivalent tons and 15% of this total emission is generated by cars, exceeding 75 million tons.
One of the most controlled segments in Turkey is vehicles on the road with all of them registered centrally. As a result, the numbers related to vehicles are quite updated and correct.
This Post was submitted by Climate Scorecard Turkey Country Manager Dr. Semih Ergur