Mexican Media Brands
French Court Overturns Ban on Mercedes-Benz Sales
France's Conseil d'Etat has rejected the government's ban last year on the sale of Mercedes-Benz cars equipped with an air-conditioning refrigerant outlawed by the EU.
#regulations
Share
France's Conseil d'Etat has rejected the government's ban last year on the sale of Mercedes-Benz cars equipped with an air-conditioning refrigerant outlawed by the EU.
The ruling finalizes the temporary injunction the court issued last August. The earlier ruling blocked the government's two-month-old quarantine on Mercedes A-, B- and CLA-Class sedans and SL sport coupes.
France issued the ban after Daimler refused to stop using R124a refrigerant and switch to a far "greener" material as required by the EU. The government said it was merely carrying out the EU's directive to require all manufacturers to switch to a new refrigerant by Jan. 1, 2013.
But Daimler questioned the safety of the only immediate alternative, R1234yf, and said it would develop a carbon dioxide-based air-conditioning system by 2017. The Conseil d'Etat ruled that the banned Mercedes vehicles had not been proven a significant threat to the environment.
RELATED CONTENT
-
BMW Granted License to Test Self-Driving Cars in Shanghai
BMW AG has become the first foreign carmaker to win permission to test autonomous vehicles on public roads in China, according to the Shanghai Daily.
-
Self-Driving Chevy Bolt Ticketed for Driving Too Close to Pedestrian
Police in San Francisco ticketed the backup driver in a self-driving Chevrolet Bolt for allowing the car to drive too close to a pedestrian in a crosswalk in San Francisco.
-
U.S. in No Hurry to Regulate Autonomous Vehicles
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says the emerging technology involved in self-driving cars is too new to be tightly regulated.