New Mileage Rules

SEARCH BLOG: AUTOMOBILES

This is the start of something interesting: the Federal Government wants to mandate 35 mpg cars and 30 mpg trucks.

Some questions:

1. What is the metric based on... mpg gasoline "average" city/highway or E85 (another mandate) which has 75% of the energy/mpg of gasoline or what?
2. Are there weight limits above which the standards don't apply?
3. Will the mpg result in vehicles that are less capable and safe for hauling/towing and general business needs?
4. Will vehicles such as the Toyota Tundra or the Ford F-150 be too expensive for companies to afford?
5. Why is the government mandating fuel efficiency?
6. Will the government say that due to increased fuel efficiency, fuel taxes must be raised to offset the loss of tax revenue?
7. Why doesn't the government simply raise taxes (which it will do anyway) on fuel and let manufacturers figure out how to respond to a marketplace with more expensive fuel?

My sense is that the senators and representatives are really not interested all that much in what fuel efficiencies are achieved as much as being able to say they are "doing something." My last question above is the most expeditious and least costly way of achieving a change in the automotive products being sold... let the manufacturers and customers decide.

But the way in questions 6 and 7 would be politically incorrect... for politicians... because they would be "blamed" for causing economic dislocation and hurting automotive companies and customers. By setting "standards" these senators and representatives can claim to be "saving" the environment and avoiding global warming... and the higher fuel taxes are just a small price to pay.

Nancy Pelosi and Barbara Boxer get to be heroes by saving us from the evil automotive companies instead of being villians for increasing the cost of vehicle ownership and reducing the capabilities of the vehicles.

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