Euro 5 diesel vehicles to be banned starting October 1, 2026: 1 in 7 used cars checked on carfax.it will be banned from the roads
Transparency note: This press release was originally published in Italian. The text has been machine translated. You can find the original press release here.
Starting October 1, 2026, a permanent ban on Euro 5 diesel vehicles will take effect in Lombardy, Piedmont, Veneto, and Emilia-Romagna.
A CARFAX analysis of license plate checks conducted in Italy during the first four months of 2026 reveals that 1 in 7 checks involved a Euro 5 vehicle.
The Euro 5 vehicles inspected were, on average, 12 years old, had 146,000 km on the odometer, and in 64% of cases presented at least one risk factor, compared to 52% of the overall sample.
Among the most common brands: Fiat (13%), Audi (10%), BMW (9%), Mercedes (8%), and Volkswagen (8%). Among the models: Fiat Panda, Fiat 500, Alfa Romeo Giulietta, Volkswagen Golf, and BMW’s X series.
Checking the vehicle’s emissions class and history before purchase is now an essential step to avoid ending up with a car that will soon be banned from the cities where you live or work.
Milan, June 16, 2026 – Starting October 1, 2026, in Lombardy, Piedmont, Veneto, and Emilia-Romagna, Euro 5 diesel vehicles registered between 2011 and August 2015 will no longer be allowed to drive in major urban centers on weekdays (from Milan to Turin, from Bologna to Verona). This change directly affects the Italian used-car market, where these vehicles continue to play a major role. An analysis by CARFAX, a leading international provider of vehicle history information, of license plate checks conducted on carfax.it between January 1 and May 3, 2026, shows that, of the more than 100,000 vehicles checked, over 14,000 belong to the Euro 5 class (14% of the total), or about one in seven cars.
This is by no means a negligible proportion, considering that these vehicles are subject to a regulatory change that is set to significantly impact their residual value and their practical suitability for daily use across much of northern Italy. For those considering a used car purchase, this is a clear signal that checking the vehicle’s emissions class before negotiations is now an essential step, to be taken alongside checking the vehicle’s history: the real risk is finding yourself, from one day to the next, with a car that can no longer be used for daily commuting.
But what condition are these cars in? A comparison with the overall sample data reveals significant differences. The Euro 5 cars inspected have an average age of 12 years, compared to 9 years for the total sample, and an average mileage of 146,000 km, nearly 30,000 km more than the general average of 117,000 km. Above all, the share of cars with at least one risk factor rises to 64% (compared to 52% of the total), and that of cars with documented accidents or damage reaches 57%, compared to the average of 43%. These figures paint a picture of a vehicle fleet that is older, more worn out, and with a more complex history, just as it is about to be affected by the new restrictions.
In terms of the most represented brands among Euro 5 inspections, Fiat leads the ranking with 13% of the total, followed by Audi (10%), BMW (9%), Mercedes (8%), and Volkswagen (8%). These five brands alone account for nearly half of the Euro 5 vehicles inspected on the platform. The percentage of vehicles with at least one risk factor varies significantly by brand: Audi and BMW stand at 77% and 78%, respectively; Mercedes at 74%; Volkswagen at 65%; while Fiat (the most widespread brand) stands at 60%. These figures, combined with an average mileage that exceeds 160,000 km for premium brands, paint a picture of a segment where checking the vehicle’s history is a necessary step.
Looking at individual models, the Fiat Panda is the most frequently inspected Euro 5 vehicle overall (3% of all inspections, 25% of Fiat inspections), followed by the Fiat 500 (3%) and the Alfa Romeo Giulietta—a particularly significant case, given that 59% of all Giulietta models checked on carfax.it are Euro 5 vehicles. Rounding out the ranking are the Volkswagen Golf (2%) and the BMW X Series models (2%). These are cars with an average age of 12 years and mileage ranging from 114,000 km for the Fiat 500 to 167,000 km for the BMW SUVs. The common factor is the presence of a high percentage of risk factors, ranging from 53% for the Fiat Panda to 66% for the BMW X Series.
“The phase-out of Euro 5 diesel vehicles represents an important and now inevitable step for the Italian used car market,” comments Marco Arban, Director of Business Development in Europe at CARFAX. “Mobility is changing, and the market will have no choice but to adapt: in all of this, however, anyone buying a used car today must be able to make truly informed choices. The license plate check on carfax.it is a useful tool in this regard, because it reveals not only the vehicle’s emissions class but also a whole range of details regarding its history, from past accidents to discrepancies in mileage. These are risk factors that are not always clearly disclosed by the seller—sometimes because the seller is unaware of them—yet they can significantly impact the quality of the purchase. Knowing them before negotiations means buying a used car in a safer and more informed way."