(Newser)
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Announcing new fuel-efficiency standards, President Obama hailed his administration’s deal with automakers as “the single most important step we’ve ever taken as a nation to reduce our dependence on foreign oil.” With mileage standards almost doubling, Americans will save some $8,000 per vehicle on fuel, the president said. The new requirements call for an average of 54.5 mpg for cars, light trucks, and SUVs by 2025, the Detroit Free Press reports. CEOs of the Big Three and some Asian automaker executives joined Obama for the ceremony.
The deal could “revolutionize” the auto industry, writes Aaron Kessler at the Free Press, noting that it “likely will change how drivers shop for, interact with and think about cars and light trucks over the next 10 to 15 years.” The agreement marks “an extraordinary shift in the relationship between the companies and Washington,” with automakers offering a “meek acceptance” of tough new rules that a few years ago—before the auto bailout—they would have battled, writes Bill Vlasic in the New York Times.
