US vehicle manufacturers are asking president-elect Donald Trump's transition team to take a closer look at federal fuel-economy standards they say could make new vehicles too expensive for the average consumer.
The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers yesterday asked the incoming Republican administration to "harmonize and adjust" the landmark fuel-economy standards the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) adopted in 2012. Low gasoline prices have undercut consumer willingness to spend the additional money on the types of cars that could meet the standards, the trade group said.
The automakers want regulators to account for this change during a scheduled mid-term review of the fuel-economy standards for model year 2022-25 vehicles. The alliance, which represents Ford, GM, Toyota, Volkswagen, Volvo and other large vehicle manufacturers that operate in the US, has previously warned the standards would be a "daunting challenge" to meet.
"Well-meaning regulatory actions risks increasing compliance costs to the point that additional safety and fuel-efficiency technologies put new vehicles out of financial reach for the average new car purchaser," the auto group said yesterday in a letter to Trump's transition team.
EPA this summer released a 1,217-page technical report acknowledging the consumer trend toward larger vehicles. The agency said this would cause vehicles sold in 2025 to be 3-8pc less efficient than the 54.5 miles/USG it projected when it issued the standards in 2012. But the report found the standards were still achievable.
Environmentalists hoped this projected fuel-efficiency shortfall would push EPA to propose tougher standards next year during the mid-term review. But now that a Republican administration is in charge, environmentalists expect to be playing defense against automakers, which worry that more expensive vehicles will cut into their sales.
The auto alliance said it was not seeking to lower the fuel-economy standards but instead wanted there to be a "review and discussion" on better approaches to improve fuel economy, in light of changing consumer preferences and lower gasoline prices. The group said it would have sent the same letter to Democrat Hillary Clinton, had she had won the election.
The group's letter also asks Trump to complete a comprehensive review of recent regulations and establish a new "whole car cost analysis" to ensure that cumulative costs of regulations do not threaten the auto sector.
Fuel consumption from light-duty vehicles will decline by 20pc to 7mn b/d by 2030 as the US vehicle fleet turns over to the more efficient vehicles required by the new standards, according to projections the US Energy Information Administration published this year. Those reductions will come even as light-duty vehicle miles are projected to increase by 13pc.
US consumers have increasingly bought sports utility vehicles and trucks that are less fuel-efficient than cars. Traditional passenger cars accounted for 43pc of new vehicle sales last year, down from 51pc in 2000, according to the alliance. Sales of sports utility vehicles and crossovers, in contrast, accounted for 37pc of the market, up from 21pc over the same time frame.
