Two lobbying groups representing auto manufacturers have written letters urging the new head of the Environmental Protection Agency, Scott Pruitt, to reverse
a decision last month by the Obama administration to move forward with tougher fuel-economy standards that carmakers are supposed to meet by 2025.
Environmentalists said the lobbying groups overstated the difficulty
and cost of reaching the 2025 targets, which require an average fuel-economy rating of 54.5 miles per gallon across a company’s entire fleet sold in the United States.
To comply with the 2025 targets, more popular models, like S. U.V.s, would need new technology, which could raise prices for consumers.
The Obama administration’s fuel-economy targets “threaten to depress an industry
that can ill afford spiraling regulatory costs,” Mitch Bainwol, the chief executive of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, wrote in a letter on Tuesday.
Even if those targets are relaxed, the automakers will still need to comply with emissions rules set by California
and several other states with tougher standards than the E. P.A.’s.
The 2017 requirement for a large car is 33 miles per gallon, or about 25 miles per gallon in real-world driving.
