Once again, Congress is trying to substitute its own questionable wisdom on energy issues for the free choices of millions of American consumers by forcing an extraordinarily costly increase in the federal Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards for passenger cars and light trucks. The 40 percent CAFE increase to 35 mpg is included in the energy reform bill now making fitful progress toward an almost certain presidential veto. This ill-advised increase comes just when the pitiful remnants of the once-dominant Big Three U.S. automakers can least afford yet another federal directive on the design and engineering of cars and light trucks. It must also be noted that the proposed increase will make America?s highways measurably more dangerous.
If the 35 mpg CAFE standard does somehow become law, just reworking vehicles that are typically produced on three- to four-year design cycles and retooling the assembly plants that build them will cost U.S. automakers at least $114 billion. Those costs will be passed along to consumers, who will see prices increased as much as $6,000 per vehicle, and by thousands of United Auto Workers union members who will lose jobs as foreign automakers grab even more market share. Even more serious, another unavoidable consequence ? because weight is the biggest enemy of fuel economy ? will be lighter vehicles. So more people will die on the roads because collisions between lighter and heavier vehicles are more frequently lethal to occupants. This fact was conclusively demonstrated by a 2002 National Academy of Sciences study that attributed at least 2,000 highway deaths annually to CAFE standards. Similarly, using data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, USA Today estimated in 1999 that 46,000 people died in crashes they would have otherwise survived had they been in heavier vehicles.
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Toyota?s hugely successful Prius hybrid sedan has proven that consumers will buy advanced technology vehicles that also offer practicality and affordability. Hybrid and flex-fuel vehicles are steadily proliferating in the model lineups of all the major manufacturers. Fuel cell and sophisticated gas/electric hybrids are coming soon. But even in the face of higher fuel costs, the majority of new vehicles sold are still sport utilities, pickups and minivans because such vehicles satisfy real consumer needs. Manufacturers need to be able to integrate advanced technologies into vehicles that satisfy consumer needs and fit their pocketbooks. That will be impossible if Congress goes forward with the 35 mpg standard and fixes an arbitrary deadline for meeting it.
