The US auto industry is in a very interesting place. In this US auto industry sales report, I compare 1st quarter (Q1) sales going back 5 years. It’s been an interesting roller coaster, especially due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but now that we’ve gone past that, it’s extra interesting to … [continued]
If you had asked me 4 months ago if 1st quarter US auto sales would be down 495,732, nearly half a million units, in the quarter as a whole compared to the 1st quarter of 2019, I’d think you were crazy.
While the administration just finalized its reduction in vehicle efficiency from 5 percent per year to no better than a measly 1.5 percent per year (despite their own evidence showing how bad it is for the country), that hasn’t stopped the auto industry from seeking even further reductions.
We primarily cover the electric vehicle market here on CleanTechnica. However, context is important and that means sometimes looking at the broader automobile market. Therefore, I collect US auto sales data from almost all automakers on a monthly basis and take a look at their sales trends. I also split out car/sedan sales data for these automakers since the dominant, mass-market electric vehicle currently on the market is a car (the Tesla Model 3).
A recent article in Forbes highlighted that J.D. Power and LMC Automotive have found “a growing backlog of unsold new cars and trucks” across the country. The reason? Sales are down.
“Oh, woe! Alas, alack! Please, Mr. Trump, don’t roll back auto emissions rules too much, sir. Just a little bit. That’s all we’re asking.” That’s the message US automakers are sending to Washington these days as the Trump maladministration prepares to release new exhaust emission rules that will take this once great nation back to the heady days when you could smell unburned hydrocarbons pouring from the tailpipe of the car in front of you.
After the auto bailout, Ford, GM and Chrysler pledged to support stricter fuel standards. Now, they are working with President Trump to weaken those rules.
Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it, the old expression goes. After dropping their drawers and bending way over in supplication to the new president and his designated EPA wrecker Scott Pruitt, US automakers cheered when the putative president announced last week in Michigan that he is ordering a CAFE review for the standards due to take effect in 2025 — the same standards the Obama administration did its best to set in stone just before leaving office.
U.S. automaker CEOs apparently lobbied President Trump to weaken strong fuel economy standards during a White House summit last week. But moving backward on fuel economy standards would be bad deal for America. It would not just threaten our health and energy security, but also jobs and investments in factories across the country.
