The government of Vilaria declared that limitations on the sale

After we've read the sentence and looked at our options, we can see that one of the biggest differences between our answer choices is how they begin, but there's no reason to use the verb "limiting," as (B) does, or the phrasing "would continue to be limited," as (C) does, instead of "limitations." So we can narrow our possible answers to (A) and (D).
The only difference between (A) and (D) is whether the verb "occurred" is strictly in the past tense, (A), or in the past participle with "had occurred," (D). We choose "had occurred" because this is the appropriate tense to refer to something that happened (or in this case, did not happen) before another past event. So, we say that no improvements "had occurred" before the government's declaration.

The correct answer is Choice (D).

Dear Friends,

Here is a detailed explanation to this question-


Choice A: Option A utilizes the simple past tense, although the past perfect tense would be more appropriate. Thus, Option A is incorrect.

Choice B: Option B uses the phrase "declared that limiting" which is both unidiomatic and awkward. Thus, Option B is incorrect.

Choice C: In Option C, the phrase "the sale of diesel vehicles would continue to be limited" is used; as this phrase is needlessly wordy, Option C is quite awkward. Option C also uses the word "not" in place of the word "no". Thus, Option C is not a good answer choice.

Choice D: Option D is concise, conveys the intended meaning of the sentence, and uses the past perfect tense. The use of the past perfect tense is appropriate here as it is being used to describe an event, no significant improvements in fuel consumption occurring, that took place before another event, the government's declaration. Thus, Option D is correct.

Choice E: In Option E, the use of the word "being" makes the sentence needlessly wordy and also uses the word "not" in place of the word "no". Thus, Option E is incorrect.

Hence, D is the best answer choice.

To understand the concept of "Past Perfect Tense - Use of 'Had' on GMAT", you may want to watch the following video (~2 minutes):



To understand the concept of “Use of ‘Being’ on GMAT”, you may want to watch the following video (~1 minute):



All the best!
Experts' Global Team

In option D, we have the time marker last year. Does anyone think that usage of past perfect does not make redundancy?

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Why is D the correct answer ?
The sentence mentions "Past year" and limitations on sales would continue because no significant improvements to fuel composition occurred. Cause and effect relationship. Obvious that cause would happen first. Why Past Perfect tense needed ?

This is not a good question. An official SC question can hinge on a one-word difference, but that difference had better be important! Here, neither version can truly be said to be wrong. There's nothing redundant about using past perfect when the order of events is clear, but it's also not strictly necessary, so either A or D should have been given an actual flaw.