Washington D.C. (December 13, 2012) – Consumer Federation of America’s (CFA) Mark Cooper will present new data to the Environmental Protection Agency today showing that new federal fuel economy standards will act to rapidly accelerate consumer acceptance of advanced fuel economy technologies.
Cooper will offer the findings of the CFA new report, Will They or Won’t They? Consumer Adoption of High Fuel Economy Vehicles, 1999-2012, and the Role of the 2025 Standards in Speeding Diffusion of Advanced Technology, to the Mobile Sources Technical Review Subcommittee’s panel on Consumer Acceptance of Advanced Technology Vehicles. The panel is tracking implementation of the new federal 54.5 mpg by 2025 fuel economy standard. Based on the findings of the new CFA report, Cooper, CFA’s Director of Research, will testify:
“The gradual required buildup to the new 2025 fuel economy standards is ideally suited to meeting consumer demand for high fuel efficiency vehicles. The challenge for automakers will be to ensure that the supply of fuel-efficient vehicles is robust. The new fuel economy standards provide car companies with a road map to meeting what is clearly consumer demand going forward. The new standard represents the perfect balance between supply and demand as consumer adoption of high fuel efficiency vehicles corresponds directly to the car companies making them available.”
Cooper’s report details, in graphs and charts, the increase in sales of two types of fuel efficient vehicles, hybrids and vehicles with 4-cylinder engines, showing that sales of these vehicles have increased by over 1.4 million units in the past ten years and now account for three quarters of all new cars and SUVs sold annually. The report supports the consensus regulation approach which is not only possible, but serves the best interests of the car companies, consumers, workers and the environment.
“The data makes clear that consumers will adopt advanced fuel economy technologies as automakers incorporate them into new vehicles to meet the 2025 goal of 54.5 miles per gallon,” said Cooper.
For the CFA Report: www.consumerfed.org/pdfs/PR.AdvancedTechnolgyAdoptionAnalysisFuelEconomy12.13.12.pdf
Contact: Mark Cooper, 301-384-2204
The Consumer Federation of America is an association of nearly 300 nonprofit consumer organizations that was established in 1968 to advance the consumer interest through research, advocacy, and education.