Copyright 2000 The Washington Post
The Washington
Post
August 6, 2000, Sunday, Final Edition
SECTION: EDITORIAL; Pg. B06
LENGTH: 433 words
HEADLINE: A
Little Less Guzzling
BODY:
THIS IS the kind
of one-upmanship we could use more of. General Motors, in response to the Ford
Motor Co.'s attention-getting announcement that it intended to boost the fuel
economy of its sport utility fleet, has fired back with a fuel savings salvo of
its own. Anything you can do, we can do better, the giant said in essence.
Ford promised to boost the average fuel economy of its sport utility
fleet by 25 percent by 2005. That would be an average gain of 5 miles a gallon
for these vehicles, which currently range between 15 and 20 mpg, depending on
the model. GM said its light truck fleet, including SUVs, is already more
fuel-efficient than Ford's, and company Vice Chairman Harry Pearce said GM will
continue to maintain its lead. He announced that the company will begin
producing hybrid gasoline-and-electric powered pickup trucks by 2004.
Both say they'll use improvements in technology to boost fuel
efficiency. Until now, automakers have used those breakthroughs to boost the
power and acceleration of the trucks and SUVs, arguing that consumers demanded
those features. Now Ford and GM say their research shows consumers want more
fuel-efficient choices. Meanwhile, foreign automakers are competing by offering
SUVs with lighter-weight bodies. This is a welcome turn. In recent years the
average fuel efficiency of the U.S. fleet has been declining, driven down as
gas-guzzling SUVs and light trucks claimed a larger and larger share of the
market. The light trucks are held to a lower federal fuel efficiency
standard than passenger cars, and Congress, heavily lobbied by the
automakers, has blocked any change in those standards since 1995.
This
summer's spike in gas prices probably did more than anything else to raise
drivers' consciousness on fuel economy, but burning less gas per mile is good
energy and environmental policy as well as easier on the wallet. Cars and light
trucks account for about 40 percent of U.S. oil consumption and produce about 20
percent of the annual carbon dioxide emissions, a major contributor to global
warming. Together Ford and GM produce about half the SUVs and light trucks in
the U.S. market, so improvements in their fleets could ultimately have a real
impact.
It will take some time for the effects of all this to kick in,
though, as newer models begin to replace older gas guzzlers on the road. In the
meantime drivers concerned about gas consumption could ponder one more question:
Do they really need off-road-ready behemoths--even more efficient ones--to drive
to the office, the grocery store and the PTA?
LOAD-DATE: August 06, 2000
