Fuel Economy

By Harry Stoffer
Automotive News / June 14, 2004

By Mark Rechtin
Automotive News / November 24, 2003

LOS ANGELES -- In publicity for its Prius hybrid-electric vehicle, Toyota Motor Corp. claims the compact sedan is EPA-certified to get 51 mpg on the highway, 60 mpg in the city and 55 mpg in a "combined" driving environment.

Unfortunately for most consumers, their Priuses will never come close to that performance level.

Press a Toyota engineer, and he'll admit that most Prius owners get around 44 mpg from their cars in combined driving.

Between 1975 and 1978, GM increased its passenger car fuel economy by 26% from 15.2 to 19.2 mpg. In 1977, GM bounded ahead of Ford and Chrysler by more than 1 mpg by taking a 1,000 pounds of excess weight out of its largest cars. Not only were GM's new models a fuel economy success, they were a sales success as well. In December 1978 when the 1979 models were on sale, GM Chairman Thomas A Murphy said:

Each wave of new more fuel-efficient GM products has met with outstanding success in the competitive marketplace.

March 9, 2003

Here's a rundown on some of the spats between AAA and its critics.

 In March 2002, two AAA clubs in California sent a letter to the California Senate opposing legislation that would lower carbon dioxide emissions from vehicles. The letter argued that the rules could "result in significant adverse consequences for the motoring public in California."

STATEMENT OF CLARENCE M. DITLOW

DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR AUTO SAFETY

On Reforming the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) Standards
Before the

SENATE COMMITTEE on COMMERCE, SCIENCE AND TRANSPORTATION

Washington DC December 6, 2001