Major cities in Germany will be able to ban diesel cars after a ruling by the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig.

German states had appealed against bans imposed by local courts in Stuttgart and Duesseldorf in cases brought by environmental group DUH over poor air quality.

However, those appeals were rejected yesterday (Tuesday, February 27) and both cities were ordered to change their air quality plans.

Cities are expected to target diesel models with older emission controls. Of the 15 million diesel cars on Germany's roads, only 2.7 million have the latest Euro-6 technology, data by the KBA motor vehicle watchdog showed.

An outright ban could badly damage residual values.