BMW and Toyota Test Cooking-Oil Fuel in Regular Cars on Spanish Roads

While American automakers are doubling down on big engines, Europe is sprinting in the opposite direction. BMW and Toyota have just kicked off a six-month experiment in Spain that could reshape how the continent thinks about gasoline. The twist? The fuel powering their test cars comes from used cooking oil and agricultural waste.

The pilot, launched this month, involves about 20 BMW and Toyota vehicles running exclusively on Repsol’s Nexa 95 renewable gasoline. Bosch is supplying its Digital Fuel Twin system to track every drop from the refinery to the tank, ensuring only certified renewable fuel is used.

The goal isn’t just to lower tailpipe emissions, it’s to prove that existing gas cars can burn this stuff without a single mechanical change. No new engines. No new pumps. Just regular cars at regular stations.

The partners have three clear targets: show that renewable gasoline can flow through existing public fuel stations, verify Bosch’s digital certification works in the real world, and demonstrate that drivers don’t need special equipment to run on it. Spain was chosen because Repsol already operates the country’s only public network offering 100 percent renewable gasoline.

The timing matters too. Europe is still locked in on phasing out new combustion cars by 2035, but policymakers are debating whether carbon-neutral fuels should get a pass.

BMW has long argued that betting everything on electric vehicles is risky. Toyota agrees, suggesting renewable fuels could bridge the gap if the EU’s zero-emissions targets slip. Both companies plan to hand over data from the Spanish trial to European lawmakers, hoping to influence future regulations that recognize vehicles running exclusively on renewable fuels as a legitimate path forward.