Given the many fuel-efficient models on the market today, you’d think that the auto industry is clearly heading in the right direction. Now, a new report from the Environmental Protection Agency verifies this, quantifying the fuel and CO2 emissions savings achieved by this sustained effort, reversing a slight downward trend in 2011.
EPA’s annual ‘Light-Duty Automotive Technology, Carbon Dioxide Emissions, and Fuel Economy Trends: 1975 through 2012’ report shows an overall 16 percent improvement in fuel efficiency values between 2007 and 2012 with a commensurate decrease in CO2 greenhouse gas emissions by 13 percent. Underscoring the momentum underway, the report also points to a significant one-year increase of 1.4 mpg alone in 2012 for cars and trucks.
Data show a reduction in 2012 vehicle CO2 emissions to 374 grams per mile combined with an average fuel economy increase to 23.8 mpg. That’s important. According to EPA, those are the largest annual improvements since the agency began reporting on fuel economy.
As we’re aware – and as EPA points out – these improvements are due to a greater number of higher mpg vehicles available to consumers and automaker use of more fuel efficient technologies. Plus, of course, automakers are already selling models that can meet more stringent future mpg and CO2 emissions standards. Happily, we expect that trend to continue.