Question of the Day: Should Fuel Economy Mandates be Tough or Evolutionary?

Today, the Trump administration lowered the corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) from 50.4 mpg to 34.9 mpg by 2031. This applies to passenger cars and light duty trucks. The CAFE at the end of 2024 was 30.1 mpg.

The final move in Trump’s “Freedom Means Affordable Cars” reportedly allows automakers more flexibility in the types of vehicles they build to attract more buyers. It would also reduce the average price of a new vehicle by $1,300 and save $138 billion during the next five years. 

It would also, according to the administration, save 1,900 lives and prevent 300,000 serious injuries because the price reduction would allow more people to buy new cars, trucks and crossovers to replace less safe older vehicles. The average age of a vehicle on U.S. roads right now is 12 years old — a number that has been steadily rising for several years.

Less efficient vehicles will force car owners to spend more on gas, which is much more expensive than normal courtesy of the ongoing conflict between the U.S. and Iran. The previous fuel economy standard would have saved drivers an estimated $600 annually in gas costs, according to estimates from the Biden administration.

So the question of the day is do you think automakers should have targets that are challenging to reach or less strenuous to allow for evolutionary change? Let us know.

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