U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Automotive Trends Report: 2022 Edition Released

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The United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) has released a document titled:

The Report is released annually and contains information addressing new light-duty vehicle:

• Greenhouse Gas Emissions (“GHG”)
• Fuel Economy
• Technology Data
• Auto Manufacturers’ Performance in Meeting EPA GHG Emission Standards

EPA has collected data on the light-duty vehicle models sold in the United States since 1975. The federal agency states that the data collected supports national programs that include:

• EPA Criteria Pollutant and GHG Standards
• U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Corporate Average of Fuel Economy (“CAFE”) Standards
• Vehicle Fuel Economy and Environment Labels

Motor vehicles are one of the single greatest aggregate sources of air emissions. For example, most CO₂ emissions originate from motor vehicles. Other air pollutants emitted by motor vehicles include aldehydes, benzene, toluene, xylene, ethylene, dibromide, butadiene, and lead. The quantity of such emissions varies with the vehicle’s age depending upon the type of emission controls that are in place.

Title II of the Clean Air Act prescribes emission control measures for both the vehicles themselves and the motor fuels they utilize.

Key conclusions from EPA’s Report include:

• New vehicle estimated real-world CO₂ emissions are at a record law and fuel economy remains at a record high
• All vehicle types are at record low CO₂ emissions; however, market shifts away from cars and towards sport utility vehicles and pickups have offset some of the fleetwide benefits
• Average new vehicle fuel economy, horsepower, weight, and footprint are all at record highs
• Most manufacturers have improved CO₂ emissions and fuel economy over the last 5 years
• Manufacturers continue to use a wide array of advanced technologies
• All large manufacturers have achieved compliance with the GHG standards through at least model year 2020
• Manufacturers used different combinations of technology improvements and banked credits in model year 2021
• The overall industry used credits to maintain compliance, and there remains a large bank of credits for future years
• The automobile industry continues to innovate, improve, and met the GHG standards

A copy of the Report can be downloaded here.