EPA has released its 2019 Automotive Trends Report which discusses new light-duty vehicle GHG emissions, fuel economy, technology data, and auto manufacturers’ performance in meeting the agency’s GHG emissions standards. A copy of the report along with the Executive Summary are available here.
A few headlines from the Exec Summary are below.
Manufacturers continue to adopt a wide array of advanced technologies
New vehicle estimated real-world CO2 emissions are at a record low and fuel economy is at a record high
In model year 2018, the average vehicles fell by 4 grams per mile (g/mi) to 353 g/mi, the lowest level ever measured. Fuel economy increased by 0.2 miles per gallon to 25.1 mpg, achieving a record high.
Manufacturers have made significant improvements in fuel economy and CO2 emissions over the last 5 years
Over the last five years, eleven of the fourteen largest manufacturers selling vehicles in the U.S. market improved both estimated real-world CO2 emissions and fuel economy of their new vehicle fleets. One manufacturer, Tesla, improved fuel economy (as measured in miles per gallon of gasoline equivalent, or mpge) but not tailpipe CO2 emissions, because their all-electric fleet produces no tailpipe CO2 emissions. Two of the fourteen manufacturers increased CO2 emissions and decreased fuel economy of their new vehicle fleets (Hyundai and VW).
Manufacturers used different combinations of technology improvements and banked credits to achieve compliance in 2018
The industry generated almost as many credits as it used in 2018, maintaining a large bank of credits for future model years.