A number of automotive suppliers have expressed their concerns about potential U.S. rollbacks in fuel efficiency standards.
Automotive News reports that suppliers of emissions-control and fuel-efficiency technology are pushing back at the prospect and believe they could suffer financially, particularly since they’ve already invested in developing components that comply with the fuel standards initially passed under the Obama administration.
Founder of market research firm Baum & Associates, Alan Baum believes the concerns of suppliers stems from the possibility of part prices rising.
“From a supplier’s standpoint, you are making that investment and expecting certain levels of demand, which allows you to price your product more favorably because the volumes are going to be greater. If the standards change and demand drops, you will still be able to sell the product, but not at the same volume. So, the piece price is likely to rise. And that’s not good for the automaker or the consumer,” he said.
Just a few days ago, a number of environmentalists also expressed their concerns about CAFE changes at a public comment hearing organized by the EPA.
Under the Obama administration, EPA rules were set between the 2022 and 2025 model years to ultimately reach fleetwide averages of 54.5 mpg. However, automakers have pushed the Trump administration to review these standards.
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