Word: fuel
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...problem was brought to a head in the past couple of years by drivers of new hybrid vehicles who complained to the EPA their vehicles were getting significantly lower mileage than their fuel-economy stickers indicated they would. Faced with a growing chorus of complaints, the EPA reacted by holding hearings last winter and collecting more than 3,000 comments from manufacturers, consumers and environmentalists. This week the EPA announced it was changing how it determines the miles-per-gallon estimates that appear on new vehicle window stickers...
...standards will take effect in September 2007 for model year 2008 vehicles. The new rules may trim the city-driving mileage estimates of some vehicles by as much as 12%, EPA officials acknowledge. "EPA's new fuel economy sticker ensures American motorists won't be stuck with higher-than-anticipated charges at the pump," says EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson. "Consumers can get more bang for their buck by considering fuel use while shopping for cars and trucks - saving money on refueling costs while helping protect our environment...
...relied on data from two laboratory tests designed in 1984 to determine the city and highway fuel economy estimates on the stickers - even while real-world driving conditions across the U.S. changed over the past 22 years. The new calculations will include factors such as high speeds, aggressive acceleration, stop-and-go traffic, the use of air conditioning (which increases fuel consumption), as well driving in cold weather, which also reduces mileage...
...Robert L. Darbelnet, president of the American Automobile Association (AAA), welcomed the changes to the fuel economy labeling process. "This is first and foremost a truth-in-advertising issue. Consumers deserve the government's best efforts when it comes to compiling the information they see on the label of new vehicles. That has not been the case and EPA is moving to correct the situation," he said in a statement praising the changes in the government stickers. "Purchasing a new vehicle is an expensive investment that consumers take very personally and make with great care," Darbelnet added. "We've known...
...Carmakers have so far had little to say about the new rules. "We don't know what the fuel economy numbers will be because of the EPA's new tests," says Chris Alaniz, chief engineer for the new Dodge and Chrysler minivans, due out next autumn...