April 1, 2022 – The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration confirmed it’s undoing the Trump-era rollbacks that would’ve required new vehicles to average 24 miles per gallon by 2026. Instead, they must hit 40 mpg in four years’ time.
These new rules have average fuel economy increasing eight percent per year for model years 2024 and 2025, then jumping 10 percent in the 2026 model year. The NHTSA claims this will save more than 200 billion gallons of gasoline versus the previously set requirements, which themselves were a drastic reworking of those established by former President Obama.
From a fleet-wide perspective, automakers must hit Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards of 49 mpg. It was announced earlier this week that the NHTSA will be taking this much more seriously as it’s set to nearly triple the fines for automakers who fall short of that number.
