EPA Report: Gas Mileage Down, Pollution Up

Major automakers are failing to meet fuel-efficiency standards critical to reducing climate pollution from cars and trucks, according to the Automotive Trends Report released today by the Environmental Protection Agency.

"The auto companies promised to boost gas mileage and cut emissions 5% a year. Instead, for the first time in five years, mileage and pollution got worse," said Dan Becker, director of the Center for Biological Diversity's Safe Climate Transport Campaign. "Even before President Trump slammed on the brakes when he rolled back mileage-and-emissions standards, the EPA report shows, the auto companies had failed to cut pollution and improve fuel efficiency."

"The automakers grabbed onto loopholes, so gas mileage went down and pollution went up. They got everything backwards," Becker said.

"Without tough rules from the Biden administration, automakers will keep pushing gas-guzzling Trumpmobiles on consumers rather than deliver clean cars that cut pollution," Becker said. "With stringent new rules, the new administration can take the biggest single step of any nation to fight climate change, slashing emissions from gas-powered cars and requiring automakers to mass-produce clean electric vehicles."

Here are the key details in the Trends report:

• For the first time in five years, fuel efficiency fell and pollution grew.
• Fiat Chrysler, GM, Mercedes Benz, Ford and Toyota scraped the bottom of the barrel, delivering the worst fuel efficiency and spewing the most emissions.
• Eleven of the 14 major manufacturers needed loopholes to meet the miles-per-gallon standards. They generated credits, for example, by equipping vehicles with improved air conditioning refrigerant or by installing solar roof panels on their vehicles, rather than by improving mileage.
• Three companies -- Ford, GM and Mazda -- delivered worse fleet-wide gas mileage and emissions than they did five years ago.