PFAS in the Automotive Life Cycle: Applications, Exposure, End-of-Life Management, and Treatment Challenges

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are widely used in the automotive industry because of their chemical and thermal stability, low permeability, and low-friction properties. Their applications include seals, hoses, wire and cable insulation, coatings, lubricants, hydraulic fluids, and increasingly advanced battery and fuel-cell systems. However, the persistence of PFAS raises concerns throughout the automotive life cycle, from manufacturing and vehicle use to end-of-life vehicle (ELV) processing, recycling, and disposal. This review critically examines PFAS applications and occurrence in automotive systems, potential exposure and environmental release pathways, their fate during ELV management, available treatment technologies, regulatory developments, and emerging substitution strategies. Available evidence confirms PFAS occurrence in vehicle-associated matrices, including cabin dust, automotive fluids, and automotive shredder residue (ASR), while direct automotive-specific measurements remain limited. Importantly, high material recovery from ELVs does not necessarily ensure chemical circularity, as PFAS may remain in recovered materials, enter ASR, or transfer to subsequent treatment and disposal streams. Current PFAS treatment approaches include adsorption, ion exchange, membrane separation, electrochemical and plasma-based processes, and thermochemical treatment; however, much of the available performance evidence is derived from non-automotive matrices and requires validation using automotive-specific wastes. Significant knowledge gaps also remain in component-to-waste PFAS mass balances and in the characterization of unidentified organofluorine fractions not accounted for by routinely targeted PFAS. Future research should therefore prioritize automotive-specific measurements, complementary targeted and fluorine-based analytical approaches, matrix-specific treatment validation, improved chemical traceability, and function-based substitution. Integrating these elements is essential for improving PFAS management across the automotive life cycle and supporting safer and more sustainable end-of-life material recovery.