The Obama administration has, according to White House sources who wish to remain anonymous, the support of no less than five big automakers in its bid to reduce Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) and CO2 emissions in the US until 2025.
The five major manufactures that will support the new CAFE target are, according to the aforementioned sources, General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, Honda and Hyundai.
The administration managed to come to an agreement by backing down a little from its proposed target. The new target is 54.5 mpg (4.3 lt/100 km).
It is the second time that the government makes a gesture of good will in order to get the automakers’ consent. Last spring it wanted to impose a fuel consumption standard of 60 mpg (3.9 lt/100 km) or even higher but met strong opposition. Therefore, two weeks ago it lowered its target to 56 mpg (4.2 lt/100 km) for cars and light trucks and made concessions for large truck, pickup and SUV emissions.
Despite a letter of 16 Michigan representatives expressing their strong opposition to the plan, citing job losses as a reason but offering no alternative, the government plans to go ahead with its new proposal, which will be officially announced on September 30 and finalized by July 2012.
“We are encouraged by the positive feedback we are receiving from many companies and look forward to wrapping up discussions in the near future” commented a member of the administration.
Bailing out the near-bankrupt GM and Chrysler and ensuring their survival, saving hundreds of thousands of jobs is one of the things the Obama administration is planning to use in its reelection campaign. And increasing sales of smaller, more efficient and less polluting vehicles won’t hurt their image with the environmentalists, either.
But, as they say, there’s no such thing as a free lunch. According to a statement made from the NHTSA last fall, increasing fuel efficiency by 5% each year would increase the average cost of each vehicle by at least $2,100.
Story Source: The Detroit News
