U.S. wants vehicles to get 35.5 mpg by 2016

With global talks on climate change looming, the Obama administration sought to gain momentum yesterday by unveiling its plan to require better gas mileage for cars and trucks and toughen rules on vehicle greenhouse-gas emissions.

The new standards call for the auto industry’s fleet of new vehicles to average 35.5 mpg by 2016.

The proposal will cover vehicle model years 2012 through 2016, allowing auto companies to comply at once with all federal requirements as well as standards pushed by California and about a dozen other states.

George Hoffer, a Virginia Commonwealth University economics professor specializing in the auto industry, said manufacturers will meet the new standards, but it could be difficult.

“How fast will they get a head of steam going, and at what cost?“ he asked.

The Toyota Corolla, he said, averages 32 mpg, and the Ford Focus averages 29 mpg. Both are far cries from the government mandates.

Still, Hoffer believes the manufacturers will make the adjustment.

“I don’t want to count out the ability of the of the auto industry to adapt,“ he said, pointing to the Ford Fusion hybrid, which gets more than 40 mpg in the city.

The Obama administration estimated that the requirements would cost up to $1,300 per new vehicle by 2016—but that it would take just three years to pay off that investment and that the standards would save more than $3,000 during the life of the vehicle through better gas mileage.

EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson said the standards would have the effect of taking 42 million cars off the road.

The proposal is expected to increase vehicle fuel efficiency by about 5 percent annually and reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by nearly 950 million metric tons. The plan also would conserve 1.8 billion barrels of oil, Jackson said.

Administration officials noted that the new standards are four years ahead of a 2007 law that would have required the auto industry to meet a 35 mpg average in 2020.