US Consumers Buy Bigger Cars as Fuel Economy Rises

摘要

Although US auto manufacturers are now offering passenger vehicles that are far more fuel-efficient than their gas-guzzling predecessors, demand for fuel has not taken as much of a hit as previously assumed because many consumers are simply trading up to bigger vehicles. Fuel economy has been rising gradually for light-duty vehicles of all sizes in recent years in an effort to comply with government mandates. The mandates are set as an average for a manufacturer's entire range of vehicles and they will ratchet up each year to reach 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. There are now around 450 gasoline-powered vehicle models available in the US that deliver fuel performance of 30 mpg or better, and sales data show that the more fuel-efficient models are popular with consumers (OD Jun.27'14).