It was only after the government imposed new fuel economy rules — first under President George W. Bush and then under President Barack Obama —
that the average fuel economy of vehicles on American roads began rising again.
Rather than harm the industry, the rules — which made cars smaller, safer
and more fuel efficient — played a crucial role in helping the American car business beat back competition from European and Japanese imports.
We also have to consider another scenario: Loosening the fuel-economy rules could remove a primary incentive for big carmakers to catch up with innovative upstarts like Tesla
and leave the American car industry out of step with a future ruled by electric motors rather than the internal combustion engine.
In the absence of that ecosystem, switching to a car based on a fundamentally new tech platform, even if might offer benefits in the long run, is going to be hard — which means
that car companies won’t have much incentive to build it.
In other words, regulations crafted in the right way could sometimes cost nothing — the rules
would prompt innovations, attract new customers, and improve the industry over all.
“But consumer acceptance of that technology is another thing.” In a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency, the Alliance argued in February
that Obama-era fuel economy rules would make cars more expensive, thus reducing sales and causing the loss of 1.1 million jobs.
Getting rid of them would prompt a resurgence in the auto industry that would make America “the car capital of the world again,” he said.
In a speech in Ypsilanti, Mich., Mr. Trump said he would alter rules imposed by the Obama administration
to raise vehicles’ fuel standards, which are aimed at curbing greenhouse gases.