Stellantis and General Motors ranks the worst automakers for fuel efficiency even in the midst of the push for EVs, EPA says
General Motors might be changing to an all-electric future, yet its new vehicle fleet ranked among the most un-productive and most polluting in the U.S. automotive industry, as per a report released Monday by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
For the 2021 model year, the EPA ranked the average estimated real-world fuel economy and carbon emissions of the Detroit automaker as the second-worst in the industry. Stellantis, formerly Fiat Chrysler, was the only major automaker that performed worse than General Motors.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says that since the 2016 model year, Hyundai Motor, Mazda, and Volkswagen have all seen increases in CO2 emissions and decreased fuel economy.
Ford Motor, which came in just behind GM, did a little better over the five years, but it still fell short of the industry average.
The report comes at a time when the Biden administration is working to move the United States away from cars powered by gas and toward electric cars. By 2030, the White House wants electric vehicles to account for half of all new vehicle sales. Most notably, GM has stated that by 2035, it will only sell consumer electric vehicles.
In a statement, EPA Administrator Michael Regan stated, “Today’s report demonstrates the significant progress we’ve made to ensure clean air for all as automakers continue to innovate and utilize more advanced technologies to cut pollution.”
The average fuel economy of a vehicle in 2021 was unchanged from the previous year, reaching a record high of 25.4 miles per gallon. The average fleet efficiency in 2022 is expected to rise to 26.4 mpg, according to the EPA. According to the report, new vehicle carbon dioxide emissions fell to a record low of 347 grams per mile.
Each year, approximately one-third of climate-warming greenhouse gas emissions come from the transportation sector. CO2 emissions from all vehicle types are at an all-time low; However, some of the benefits to the fleet as a whole have been offset by market shifts away from cars toward SUVs and pickup trucks.
Stellantis refered to the rising interest among purchasers for SUVs and pickups in light of its lower rankings, saying they do “not reflect our current or future product plan.”
“Auto companies claim they’re chugging ahead with electric vehicles, but the EPA’s report shows they’re more like the caboose claiming to be the engine,” said Dan Becker, director of the Center for Biological Diversity’s Safe Climate Transport Campaign.
Automakers are using regulatory credits they’ve acquired from rivals or earned in previous years to meet stricter emissions standards.
Tesla, which only makes all-electric vehicles that don’t produce any CO2 emissions, topped the rankings. It had a 123.9-mile average fuel economy, which is measured in miles per gallon of gasoline equivalent (mpge).
Hybrid vehicles assist with working on the 2021 midpoints. According to the report, hybrids increased in popularity among truck, SUV, and pickup vehicle categories last year, accounting for 9% of all production, a record high. The EPA anticipates that fuel cell, electric, or plug-in hybrid vehicles will account for 8% of all vehicles by 2022, up from 4% in 2021.
Some politicians and environmentalists have criticized Toyota Motor for not moving more quickly to EVs, pointing to the company’s Prius, which helped popularize the hybrid market.
Toyota has argued that hybrid vehicles will continue to be a better option for some customers in the foreseeable future due to their superior fuel economy and CO2 emissions performance. The company asserts that it can produce eight plug-in hybrids with a range of 40 miles for each battery electric vehicle with a range of 320 miles and reduce atmospheric carbon emissions by up to eight times.
