Outcome of future CAFE standards ‘prejudged at great risk’

In 2012, the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) established standards for the corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) of passenger cars and light trucks for MY2017-2021. They also provided non-final ‘augural’ standards for MY2022-2025 in the hope of helping OEMs to plan ahead.

As the organisations are required to set CAFE standards for no more than five years at a time, the EPA has said it will coordinate with NHTSA and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to conduct a midterm evaluation (MTE) for the augural standards before agreeing on a final rule.