Report blames automakers for poor fuel economy ratings

Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Although automakers have developed substantial fuel-saving technologies over the years, they have used them largely to boost performance and vehicle size and weight, a government report concludes.

As a result, the fuel economy of new passenger vehicles is as poor as it’s ever been in the past 20 years, and worse than in 1988, according to the report.

"Fuel economy is being traded for weight and power," says the fuel economy trends report released Thursday by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The report is expected to add to the debate over whether the government should require automakers to ratchet up fuel economy, especially in the popular sport utility vehicles that are subject to less stringent regulation than other passenger cars.

The EPA report said the average fuel use of new passenger vehicles — both sedans and light trucks, including SUVs and vans — has declined 1.9 miles per gallon since 1988, and at an average of 24 mpg is at the lowest level since 1980.

The report assessed fuel economy, as obtained in laboratory test runs, of car models from 1975 through 2000. The EPA next week will release its fuel economy numbers for the new 2002 models now just appearing in showrooms.

The decline in overall fuel economy stems largely from the popularity of SUVs, vans and small pickups, which now account for about 46 percent of all passenger vehicles sold.

But the report says automakers also have not used available technologies to improve fuel economy. Instead, they have used advances in motors, transmissions and other technologies to make cars larger and heavier, but with greater acceleration.

The government requires that new passenger sedans meet a fleet average of 27.5 miles per gallon, while SUVs, vans and pickups must meet a 20.1 mpg average.

This year’s EPA trends report said that in the 2000 model fleet, cars averaged 28.1 mpg, vans 22.5 mpg, pickups 20.1 mpg and SUVs 20 mpg. It said that while the 3.2 million model 2000 SUVs, pickups and vans reflected 46 percent of the total vehicles sold, they can be expected to consume 56 percent of the fuel used by the model 2000 vehicles.

A National Academy of Sciences report on fuel economy recently also concluded that technologies exist to significantly boost automobile fuel efficiency over the next 10 to 15 years without making cars smaller. It urged that the focus for improvements be on SUVs.

But the academy’s conclusions have been challenged by the automakers, who claim the panel of scientists overestimated potential fuel savings.

Copyright ©2001 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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