May 20, 2009 - 12:00 AM
New auto rules to transform U.S. fleet
New Obama rules will transform auto fleet
New Obama rules will transform auto fleet
The Associated Press
Some soccer moms will have to give up hulking SUVs. Carpenters will still haul materials around in pickup trucks, but they will cost more. Nearly everybody else will drive smaller cars, and more of those will run on electricity. The higher mileage and emissions standards set by the Obama administration Tuesday, which begin to take effect in 2012 and are to be achieved by 2016, will transform the American car and truck fleet. The rules will bring new cars and trucks sold in the United States to an average of 35.5 miles per gallon, about 10 mpg more than today's standards. Passenger cars will be required to get 39 mpg; light trucks, 30 mpg. That means cars and trucks on American roads will have to become smaller, lighter and more efficient.
Eric Fedewa, vice president of global powertrain forecasting for the auto consulting firm CSM Worldwide in Northville, Mich., said the changes will make pickup trucks so much more expensive that they will be used almost exclusively for work.And instead of a minivan or SUV, more parents will haul their families in much smaller vehicles with three rows of seats – something more like the Mazda 5 small van, he said. The Mazda 5 gets about 28 mpg on the highway.“I think what you'll see is a lot more creativity in interior packaging,” Fedewa said. “You'll get more rows of seats where you traditionally had cargo space.”
