FCA Fined $77 Million For Missing U.S. CAFE Fuel Economy Target

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles has revealed that it paid a $77 million civil penalty because its passenger cars built in the U.S. failed to meet required fuel economy targets for the 2016 model year.

Bloomberg reports that the car manufacturer was the only one to pay such a penalty for 2016 MY under the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFÉ) requirements. This is the largest fine issued to a single company in at least five years, the NHTSA reports. FCA paid it in the fourth quarter of 2018.

“We at FCA are committed to improving the fuel efficiency of our fleet and expanding our U.S. manufacturing footprint,” head of external affairs at Fiat Chrysler for North Amerca Shane Karr said.

“Ultimately, both goals are better served by a CAFE program more closely aligned to the U.S. market, than by requiring companies to make large compliance payments because assumptions made in 2011 turned out to be wrong.”

Fiat Chrysler, as well as a number of other car manufacturers, have been outspoken critics of current fuel economy requirements that were put in place during Barack Obama’s presidency and, since President Donald Trump took office, have been pushing for less stringent standards.

The NHSTA and Environmental Protection Agency appear to be hearing these calls and have proposed capping mileage requirements at 37 mpg after 2020 rather than raising them to 47 mpg by 2025, as called for by the Obama administration-imposed target.