Detroit says Nissan wins from new fuel economy legislation
In the eyes of the Detroit carmakers, the big winner from the energy bill passed in the Senate this week is Nissan. One of the oddball quirks of the original CAFE regulations was a separation of domestic and import vehicle fleets for purposes of calculating the averages. This resulted in strange scenarios such that most American of cars the Ford Crown Victoria getting assembled with just enough imported parts to bring it below the threshold for domestic classification. Calling the Canadian-assembled Crown Vic an import allowed it to be averaged with the Festiva that Ford was then importing from Kia instead of lumping it in with other, thirstier models like the Mustang. The opposite scenario hit Nissan in recent years when the Mexican-built Sentra became a domestic thanks to NAFTA. Nissan was actually the only carmaker to support the bill that passed which included eliminating the two fleet rule and counting all vehicles together. The US carmakers have vowed to make sure the two fleet rule returns to any final form of the bill that is passed. Most likely, the Democrats will restore it to ensure that some small car production remains in North America.
[Source: Detroit Free Press]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Joseph 4:25PM (6/24/2007)
Two fleets? What???
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BC 11:31AM (6/25/2007)
CAFE is stupid and the whole scheme should be abolished in favor of a system that classifies vehicles by weight. As it exists it has too many loopholes, and though I support some fuel efficiency standards, I've always thought the concept of CAFE from the beginning penalizes domestic automakers. As CAFE exists now, it's just a feel-good government mess with concessions to the industry, the UAW, and the ethanol lobby. CAFE also makes consumers lazy. If people want fuel efficient cars, put your money where your mouth is and buy more of them. There are plenty on the market, and the market has responded to consumer demand and need (Prius, Fit, etc., hybrids, diesels on the way) Don't expect the government to legislate the problem away, because they'll just muck it up. The best thing to do would be to just scrap CAFE altogether and just tax gas and let people figure out (and pay for) whatever vehicle suits their needs and budget.
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Derek 12:09PM (6/25/2007)
I agree, CAFE is an idiotic mess. Anyone who has even briefly studied economics should know that it is an entirely wrongminded approach to increasing fuel economy. Being as this is a market economy, vehicle production will follow consumer demand, period. Ditch CAFE, tax gas instead. Want to see what happens to fleet average fuel economy when gas is $4.50/gal?
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Domenick 9:23AM (6/29/2007)
If CAFE doesn't work maybe an additional $2.oo per gallon tax would help. We need money to pay for the runaway deficit and cleaner air.
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