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EPA Unveils New Fuel Economy Sticker for Model Year 2008 |
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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) unveiled last week the new fuel economy sticker for the windows of new cars and light trucks. While most changes to the sticker are cosmetic—adding the combined fuel economy and displaying the estimated annual fuel cost more prominently—the numbers used in the sticker have changed significantly.
For vehicles released in model year 2008, the EPA is using new methods to estimate fuel economy, accounting for today's faster highway speeds, people's tendency to accelerate faster, and the effects of using air conditioning or operating the vehicle in cold weather. See the EPA press release and the new fuel economy label.
To keep confusion at a minimum, DOE and the EPA have also revamped the fueleconomy.gov Web site, allowing users to compare the new and old fuel economy estimates for vehicles dating back to the 1985 model year. Rather than retest the older cars, the Web site uses a formula to calculate the difference in fuel economy estimates. A perusal of the site suggests that most vehicles will see about a 10% drop in estimated fuel economy, but the drop is greater for vehicles that achieve high fuel economy during city driving. The 2007 Toyota Prius, for instance, suffers a 20% drop in estimated fuel economy for city driving, yielding a 16% drop in combined fuel economy. Likewise, the 2007 Honda Civic Hybrid experiences a 16% drop in estimated fuel economy, while the estimated fuel economy of the front-wheel-drive version of the 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid drops by 13.5%. You can also perform the calculation yourself, using an online calculator on the fueleconomy.gov site. See the online calculator and the comparison of old and new fuel economy estimates on the fueleconomy.gov Web site.
DOE and the EPA have also published the fuel economy information for vehicles that have been released early in model year 2008. The list is far from complete, so it does not provide a comprehensive look at the new model year, but it does provide useful information for people looking to buy a new car today. See the preliminary information for model year 2008 on the fueleconomy.gov Web site, available as both a searchable database and a printable file (PDF 101 KB). Download Adobe Reader. |
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Speaking at a climate change conference in Miami, California Governor Arnold Scwarzenegger said drivers can do a lot to cut fuel costs by driving slower.
"Who can cut (costs) down is you, you, you and you," Schwarzenegger
said. "You can cut it down. Take your car, for instance. Go and get the
perfect tire pressure. Tune up your engine. Drive slower." He went on to say "energy prices are not going to go back to the good
old days" and it is "bogus" for politicians to promise otherwise."
"Politicians have been throwing around all kinds
of ideas in response to the skyrocketing energy prices, from the
rethinking of nuclear power to pushing biofuels and more renewables and
ending the ban on offshore drilling," Schwarzenegger said. "But anyone
who tells you this would bring down gas prices any time soon is blowing
smoke. I think that people should really be in charge of their
own destiny and how much they want to pay for fuel, not wait for the
politicians," he said.
The Drive 55 Conservation Project is delighted with the Governor's message and hand delivered a Thank You letter with Drive 55 bumper stickers to his office in Sacramento today. Leadership in the legislature also got a letter and some Drive 55 bumper stickers hand delivered to their offices in the Capital, inviting them to 'Lead by example'.
Quote sources:
Sacramento BEE
http://www.sacbee.com/111/story/1042081.html
LA Times
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/
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