US finalizes 2011 gas mileage rules

The U.S. Transportation Department has chosen to use initial rules set by the Bush administration for 2011 fuel mileage, setting average gas mileage for light trucks (including minivans) at 24.1 mpg and for cars at 30.2 mpg. One reason for keeping the Bush rules in place for 2011 is because of the long lead times in the auto industry.

The  expected price increase on new vehicles is $64 for cars and $126 for light trucks and multi-purpose vehicles; this would be paid off in fuel cost savings, even at low gas prices, within 4.4-7.7 years. 

The new rules now cover vehicles under 10,000 pounds in gross vehicle weight, while existing rules only covered vehicles up to 8,500 pounds.  Rules for medium and heavy duty trucks are being considered but would not take effect until 2015 or later. 

While the industry has complained about the expense of meeting the rules, in the long run they could prevent an erosion of domestic market share. Currently, most customers (according to numerous surveys) do not believe domestic automakers make fuel efficient vehicles, though in many niches, such as minivans, American vehicles are the most fuel efficient or are well within class bounds. By forcing domestic automakers to rejoin the high-mileage segment, the rules could eliminate or reduce this  perception so that sudden hikes in gas prices do not drive customers reflexively to imported vehicles. In theory, domestic automakers’ engineering costs would be reduced as they produced common vehicles for domestic and export sale, rather than having different lines for North America and other regions.