Average Fuel Economy Rises

The EPA is the government arm that tests fuel economy, and its numbers are what appear on the window stickers of new cars. This is different than the government’s CAFE figures, which you hear talked about in Washington.

These real numbers are projected to rise 0.2 mpg on average for 2009 over last year, according to the EPA, up to 20.8 mpg.

Final data won’t be in until early 2009, but the EPA says these projections show the fourth consecutive rise in average fuel economy of cars and light trucks. The biggest impact has come from trucks themselves. While their market share has shrunk from 52% in 2004 to 48% in 2008, their overall effiency has risen.

The 20.8 mpg figure is the highest since 1993, and the EPA expects the final number to be even higher with the recent shift toward small cars due to high gas prices.

Source: EPA