Consumers Bypass Both Smallest Gas Sippers and Largest 'Gas Guzzlers'
4 October 2000
Consumers Bypass Both Smallest Gas Sippers and Largest 'Gas Guzzlers'
WASHINGTON, Oct. 3 Despite recent high gas prices, the
most fuel-efficient vehicles available continue to be the least popular with
American consumers. The 40,000-member Coalition for Vehicle Choice (CVC)
points out fuel economy "winners" are losers in the marketplace because they
lack features that consumers want and need.
Concurrently, light trucks with the lowest fuel economy also represent a
very small share of the overall market, contrary to conventional wisdom.
"More and more, consumers demand safety, utility, performance and
affordability -- a combination of attributes that gas sippers simply do not --
and cannot -- provide," said CVC President Diane K. Steed said, "Despite this
year's gas price spike, consumers likely will continue opting for more
substantial vehicles during the 2001 model year."
According to figures from the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration, EPA's Top Ten Most Fuel Efficient list accounts for only two
percent of passenger car sales and less than one percent of light truck sales
during model year 2000 (the most recent data available). At the other end of
the spectrum, the 10 least fuel efficient trucks represent only about four
percent of light truck sales.
"The sales figures for gas sippers reflect the cumulative common sense of
millions of consumers: The choice between a vehicle that fits their needs and
lifestyles and one that fits the government's dictums on fuel economy is a no-
brainer and explains why the most fuel-efficient vehicles continue to be the
least attractive to American consumers. At the same time, the notion that the
least fuel efficient trucks make up a large portion of sales is far from
accurate."
EPA urges consumers to buy higher-mileage cars and trucks because they
emit less carbon dioxide (CO2) per mile traveled. CO2 is a non-polluting
greenhouse gas, which does not cause smog or air pollution, but which some
have associated with potential global climate change (even though the share of
global CO2 from U.S. vehicles is minuscule).
Far more important to most consumers is reducing known risks like crash
injury. And decades of analysis conclusively shows that larger vehicles,
though less fuel efficient, offer more crash protection than smaller vehicles.
In fact, the largest sport utility vehicles have the lowest fatality rate of
any car or light truck class, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway
Safety. "Because fuel economy is so closely linked to vehicle size, we
believe it is irresponsible for EPA to encourage consumers to buy more fuel-
efficient vehicles without disclosing the well-documented link between vehicle
size and safety," Steed said.
"Larger vehicles offer a significant safety advantage in a crash, a fact
validated by the laws of physics and virtually every safety study ever done by
the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and other safety
experts. Consumers know that car insurance merely protects their investment
and liability. Vehicle size is the real insurance policy which may mean paying
a little more at the gas pump, but it's a small price to pay to protect life
and limb in a crash," Steed said.
The fact is that most new cars sold today achieve remarkable fuel economy
that was unheard of when the term "gas guzzler" was coined. For example, a
1998 four-wheel-drive Jeep Cherokee sport-utility vehicle, Cadillac DeVille,
and Ford Taurus station wagon all get better mileage than a 1978 Toyota Corona
subcompact car. Virtually all minivans today get better fuel economy than the
old Volkswagen Beetle.
EPA's "top ten models" lack many of the popular safety and comfort options
like air conditioning, automatic transmissions, four-wheel drive, antilock
brakes, and engines that provide adequate hauling and towing capability.
These vehicles may save money at the gas pump, but not enough to offset the
loss of other features consumers value.
The MY01 fleet is good news for safety, with all cars and light trucks now
equipped with dual air bags, which have been "depowered" to reduce risk to
children and short-statured motorists. All new vehicles now offer improved
side-impact protection measured by crash tests, and, as part of a four-year
phase-in, one-fourth of new cars and light trucks will feature improved
interior head protection as well. And to help improve child safety, all new
cars will feature top anchorages for child-seat tether straps as standard
equipment.
The new model year is also good for the environment, with many of today's
cars and light trucks driving 99 percent cleaner than their counterparts of
the 1960s. An analysis of major U.S. cities by AAA shows that overall air
quality has and will continue to improve -- and that the lion's share of the
credit is due to much, much cleaner cars and light trucks. Cars and light
trucks contribution to the remaining air pollution in major U.S. cities is
only 24 percent.
"These new safety and emissions features tend to add weight and reduce
fuel economy," Steed noted. "But most consumers agree that safety and clean
air are far more important than a small improvement in fuel economy, and
advocacy groups should not use it to mislead the public and downplay the
safety trade-offs involved."
(See following top ten sales charts.)
1. MY 2000 EPA Top Ten Most Fuel Efficient Cars
The following ten vehicles are the top ten picks as specified by
the EPA in three categories.
MY 2000
Make Model Engine/Cylinders Transmission Units Sold
Chevy Metro 1.0L 61 CID/3 M5 5100
Chevy Metro 1.3L 79 CID/4 M5 1100
Suzuki Swift 1.3L 79 CID/4 M5 1000
Honda Civic HX 1.6L 97 CID/4 M5 4500
Honda Civic HX 1.6L 97 CID/4 AV 3000
Honda Civic 1.6L 97 CID/4 M5 156,500
Toyota Paseo 1.5L 91 CID/4 M5 0
Toyota Paseo (convrtb'l) 1.5L 91 CID/4 M5 0
Toyota Tercel 1.5L 91 CID/4 M5 0
Mistubishi Mirage 1.5L 90 CID/4 M5 5500
Total Sales 217,200
Note: A full 72% of this total is from the sale of the Civic 1.6L M5.
2. MY 2000 EPA Top Ten Most Fuel Efficient Light Trucks
Make Model Engine/Cylinders Transmission Units Sold
Chevy Tracker convrtb'l 1.6L 97 CID/4 2WD M5 800
Chevy Tracker convrtb'l 1.6L 97 CID/4 4WD M5 1100
Suzuki Vitara 1.6L 97 CID/4 2WD M5 100
Suzuki Vitara 1.6L 97 CID/4 2WD L4 0
Suzuki Vitara 1.6L 97 CID/4 4WD M5 100
Suzuki Vitara 1.6L 97 CID/4 4WD L4 0
Toyota RAV4 Soft Top 2.0L 122 CID/4 2WD L4 0
Toyota RAV4 2.0L 122 CID/4 2WD M5 5700
Toyota RAV4 2.0L 122 CID/4 2WD M5 17700
Toyota RAV4 Soft Top 2.0L 122 CID/4 2WD M5 0
Total Sales 25,500
3. MY 2000 EPA Top Ten Most Fuel Efficient Light Trucks
Make Model Engine/Cylinders Transmission Units Sold
Ford F250 Pickup 5.4L 330 CID/8 4WD L4 0
Ford Expedition 5.4L 330 CID/8 4WD L4 89,800
Lincoln Navigator 5.4L 330 CID/8 4WD L4 24,700
Dodge Ram 1500 5.9L 360 CID/8 4WD L4 45,100
GMC 2500 Sierra 6.0L 364 CID/8 2WD L4 0
Chevy C2500 Silverado 6.0L 364 CID/8 2WD L4 4,200
Dodge Durango 5.9L 360 CID/8 4WD L4 15,700
Ford Expedition 4.6L 280 CID/8 4WD L4 25,800
Cadillac Escalade 5.7L 350 CID/8 4WD L4 33,700
Chevy K1500 Tahoe 5.7L 350 CID/8 4WD L4 17,800
GMC 1500 Yukon 5.7L 350 CID/8 4WD L4 17,300
Dodge Ram 5.2L 318 CID/8 4WD L4 16,000
Total Sales 290,100
4. Sales Totals for All Vehicles MY 1996-1999
% of lt truck
Model Year Vehicle Type Total Sales sales
MY 1999 Cars 8,773,900
Light Trucks 6,748,900
Pickups 2,354,600 34.80%
Vans 1,491,700 22.10%
SUV's 3,003,400 44.50%
MY 1998 Cars 8,267,400
Light Trucks 6,499,700
Pickups 2,444,800 37.60%
Vans 1,413,800 21.80%
SUV's 2,641,100 40.60%
MY 1997 Cars 8,043,200
Light Trucks 6,118,700
Pickups 2,543,400 41.60%
Vans 1,244,500 20.30%
SUV's 2,330,800 38.10%
MY 1996 Cars 7,922,700
Light Trucks 5,241,700
Pickups 1,956,600 37.30%
Vans 1,384,900 26.40%
SUV's 1,900,200 36.30%
All figures drawn from mid-model year manufacturer reports as submitted to
NHTSA. Toyota, Honda and Mitsubishi have not yet submitted their mid-model
year reports, so figures for those manufacturers are based on pre-model year
reports.
TOTAL MY00 EPA top ten most fuel efficient car sales: 217,200
TOTAL MY00 EPA top ten most fuel efficient light truck sales: 25,500
Based on total vehicles sold in MY99, this year's EPA picks for top ten
most fuel efficient cars and light trucks can be expected to account for
little more than 2% of total sales for MY2000.
The EPA's picks for top ten least fuel efficient light trucks can expect a
similar showing.