Major carmakers on Wednesday called for changes in the Trump administration’s proposal to reform fuel economy standards, but said they back the plan to drastically slash the efficiency requirements.
The Alliance for Automotive Innovation — which represents General Motors, Toyota, Volkswagen, Hyundai, Ford and other carmakers — backed the reduction in stringency proposed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), but asked it to not eliminate credit trading to meet regulatory requirements and reconsider plans to reclassify more vehicles as cars.
“Given the slowing growth of EV sales in the US and reduced government policy support, the previously issued CAFE standards are simply unachievable,” the group said.
NHTSA proposes to eliminate credit trading among carmakers in 2028, and will end some credits for fuel-saving features. It would also reclassify many vehicles as cars instead of trucks, which affects carmakers since cars face more stringent standards than trucks.
Proposal to revise down fuel economy standards
The carmakers called for continuing credits for air conditioning efficiency and other technologies.
NHTSA is proposing to revise down the 2022 fuel economy standards and then proposing to hike them between 0.25% and 0.5% annually through 2031. In 2022, under former US president Joe Biden, NHTSA increased fuel efficiency by 8% annually for model years 2024-2025 and 10% for 2026.
Biden’s rules sought to prod carmakers to build a rising number of EVs to comply, but would not have forced an immediate end to ICE-powered vehicles.
NHTSA estimates the proposed rule would reduce average up-front vehicle costs by $930 (R15,017), but would increase fuel consumption by about 100 billion gallons through 2050 — and cost Americans up to another $185bn (R2.98bn) for fuel and increase carbon dioxide emissions by about 5%.
Reuters
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