Will cars keep on growing as the bigger they are, the less mpg required by CAFE?

[Big time]

Starting in 2011 the CAFE standards are newly expressed as mathematical functions depending on vehicle "footprint", a measure of vehicle size determined by multiplying the vehicle’s wheelbase by its average track width. A complicated 2011 mathematical formula was replaced starting in 2012 with a simpler inverse-linear formula with cut-off values. [3] CAFE footprint requirements are set up such that a vehicle with a larger footprint has a lower fuel economy requirement than a vehicle with a smaller footprint. For example, the 2012 Honda Fit with a footprint of 40 sq ft (3.7 m2) must achieve fuel economy (as measured for CAFE) of 36 miles per US gallon (6.5 l/100 km), equivalent to a published fuel economy of 27 miles per US gallon (8.7 l/100 km), while a Ford F-150 with its footprint of 65–75 sq ft (6.0–7.0 m2) must achieve CAFE fuel economy of 22 miles per US gallon (11 l/100 km), i.e., 17 miles per US gallon (14 l/100 km) published.
Corporate Average Fuel Economy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Agreed standards by model year, 2011-2025[edit]
2011-2025 CAFE standards for each model year in miles per gallon.[46]
Model Year Passenger Cars Light Trucks
"footprint": 41 sq ft (3.8 m2) or smaller (e.g. 2011 Honda Fit) "footprint": 55 sq ft (5.1 m2) or bigger (e.g. Mercedes-Benz S-Class) "footprint": 41 sq ft (3.8 m2) or smaller (e.g. Chevy s10) "footprint": 75 sq ft (7.0 m2) or bigger (e.g. Ford F-150)
CAFE EPA Window Sticker CAFE EPA Window Sticker CAFE EPA Window Sticker CAFE EPA Window Sticker
2012 36 27 28 21 30 23 22 17
2013 37 28 28.5 22 31 24 22.5 17
2014 38 28 29 22 32 24 23 18
2015 39 29 30 23 33 25 23.5 18
2016 41 31 31 24 34 26 24.5 19
2017 44 33 33 25 36 27 25 19
2018 45 34 34 26 37 28 25 19
2019 47 35 35 26 38 28 25 19
2020 49 36 36 27 39 29 25 19
2021 51 37 38 28 42 31 25 19
2022 53 38 40 30 44 33 26 20
2023 56 40 42 31 46 34 27 21
2024 58 41 44 33 48 36 28.5 22
2025 60 43 46 34 50 37 30 23

[redneck]

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This makes it a little easier to read.



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[jcp123]

That makes about as much sense as the Euros who tax cars partly on displacement, as if that's a golden ticket to determining fuel economy.

Honestly, as someone who likes (and kinda needs) larger vehicles, I'm not really against this too much...at least, as much as a libertarian can swallow micro-management from said gooberment paper-pushers.

[Hersbird]

Why they should get rid of all the cafe regulations all together. They created the SUV craze in the first place with their meddling. If they just left this stuff up to the consumer they will make the best use of their own money and manufacturers would build what the consumer wanted or be left with nothing more then a entry on Wikipedia.

[jcp123]

There's actually a little bit of truth to that. We aren't left with many (any?) cars which can do a lot of the travel trailer and boat towing pre-CAFE cars could. But then, the public was probably starting to look away from those cars anyway.

[Big Dave]

Originally Posted by Hersbird

Why they should get rid of all the cafe regulations all together. They created the SUV craze in the first place with their meddling. If they just left this stuff up to the consumer they will make the best use of their own money and manufacturers would build what the consumer wanted or be left with nothing more then a entry on Wikipedia.

After last Tuesday, CAFE is on the hit list.

Bad idea in the 1970s. Worse idea today.

[oldtamiyaphile]

Originally Posted by Old Tele man

Gotta love elected-Gooberment mandating technology they know nothing about.

You'll probably find the laws are written by unelected gooberment

[Madact]

Better idea - regulate in terms of litres per person-km (or crazy imperial equivalent). Based on usage loadings of 70% single-occupant, 10% two-occupant, 10% fully-occupied and the last 10% based on towing capacity somehow. Would be somewhere between a realistic and an extremely generous estimate of usage patterns, wouldn't you say? Of course the exact breakdown of numbers might need tweaking a bit...

[Frank Lee]

Originally Posted by Big Dave

After last Tuesday, CAFE is on the hit list.

Bad idea in the 1970s. Worse idea today.

CAFE isn't going away.

Where would today's fleet be without CAFE? V8, rwd, 20 mpg?

Why is CAFE a bad idea?

Why would an Ecomodder be opposed to efficiency standards?

If poor fuel economy is a national problem, what is a better solution? More expensive fuel?

[oldtamiyaphile]

Originally Posted by Frank Lee

If poor fuel economy is a national problem, what is a better solution? More expensive fuel?

I'm not in America, but I'd support dropping car purchase taxes to zero (including spare parts and servicing) and raising fuel taxes accordingly.