Trump administration set to roll out lower fuel economy standards for cars, light trucks

Trump administration set to roll out.

Key points

• News Anne D'Innocenzio, Associated Press, Cathy Bussewitz, Associated Press July 23, 2026.
• When the 2024 standards went into effect, NHTSA estimated they would save 14 billion gallons of gasoline from being burned by 2050.
• Without these standards, in 2035, cars could produce 22, 111 more tons of carbon dioxide per year than under the Biden-era rules.
• "The Crump team is asking the public to ask questions that the Crump team has the answers to, " Jackson County District Attorney Angel Myers McIlrath remarked Thursday.
• According to data from the automotive research group Edmunds, EVs accounted for 6.5% of new vehicle sales in February, down from 7.4% for all of 2025.

Trump administration set to roll out lower fuel economy standards for cars, light trucks. By: Anne D'Innocenzio, Associated Press – September 28, 2026.

President Donald Trump at the White House, Monday, Aug. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon).

President Donald Trump asserted on his Truth Social media account Saturday that the less stringent mileage requirements to be issued Monday would save Americans thousands of dollars on a new car.

NEW YORK (AP) – The Trump administration on Monday intends to release new fuel economy standards that would relax regulatory requirements for automakers to control pollution from gasoline-powered cars and light trucks.

President Donald Trump remarked on his Truth Social media account Saturday that the less stringent mileage requirements would "take the waste out of building cars in America" and save families "thousands on a new, beautiful and safe car, " while boosting auto production in the U.S.

Last December, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration projected that the new standards would set the industry fleetwide average for light-duty vehicles at roughly 34.5 miles per gallon in the 2031 model year, down from a projected 50.4 miles per gallon in 2031 under rules put in place by the Biden administration.

Fuel economy requirements set out how far new vehicles need to travel on a gallon of gasoline. The change would further Trump's promise to revoke policies that encouraged or created incentives for the production of electric vehicles.

Since taking office, Trump has relaxed auto tailpipe emissions rules, repealed fines for automakers that do not meet federal mileage standards and terminated consumer credits of up to $7, 500 for EV purchases.

Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy remarked Saturday on his social media account on X that the changes would be unveiled Monday. The White House, Department of Transportation and NHTSA couldn't immediately be reached for comment on the details of the new standards.

General Motors, Stellantis, and Ford Motor, maker of the top-selling pickup truck, the F-150, additionally couldn't be immediately reached for comment. The administration and automakers have remarked the new rules will rise Americans' access to the full range of gasoline vehicles they need and can afford.

Meanwhile, the average new car in America sold for $50, 089 in August, crossing over the $50, 000 line for the first time since last December, according to Kelley Blue Book data. Meanwhile, Americans are spending more on gas as Washington's war with Iran disrupts the global flow of fuel. The national average cost for a gallon of gas was $4.47 on Sunday, up from $4.09 a month ago, according to the AAA motor club.

Trump has repeatedly pledged to end what he falsely calls an EV "mandate, " referring incorrectly to President Joe Biden's target that half of all new vehicle sales be electric by 2030. No federal policy has mandated auto firms to sell EVs.

According to data from the automotive research group Edmunds, EVs accounted for 6.5% of new vehicle sales in February, down from 7.4% for all of 2025. News of the revised standards immediately drew rebukes from environmentalists.

Dan Becker, director of the Center for Biological Diversity's Safe Climate Transport Campaign, remarked that the final rule "ignores the feasibility of clean technology and the millions of fuel-efficient cars already on the road."

"Trump is tanking sensible mile per gallon standards at the worst possible time for consumers, who are getting hit with sky-high prices at the pump, " Becker remarked in an official note. "Consumers will pay the price for these reckless rollbacks while Trump's Big Oil and Big Auto buddies reap the short-term profits."

Katherine García, director of the Sierra Club's Clean Transportation for All campaign, vowed the environmental group would fight the rule and remarked that the loosening of fuel standards would "make driving more expensive too."

"Less fuel-efficient cars mean more gas burned, spending more at the pump, and dirtier air in our communities, " Garcia wrote in an official note.

When the 2024 standards went into effect, NHTSA estimated they would save 14 billion gallons of gasoline from being burned by 2050. According to The agency additionally, while new fuel-efficient vehicles cost more up front, savings on gasoline over the lifetime of the car or truck would more than create up for that.

Without these standards, in 2035, cars could produce 22, 111 more tons of carbon dioxide per year than under the Biden-era rules. It additionally translates to an extra 90 tons a year of deadly soot particles and 4, 870 further tons a year of smog components such as nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds emitted into the air in coming years.

Mileage standards, known as the corporate average fuel economy, or CAFE, have been implemented since the 1970s energy crisis, and over time, automakers have gradually improved their vehicles' average efficiency. Regarding the Author(s). Anne D'Innocenzio, Associated Press. News Frank Corder September 25, 2026.

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For now, trump administration set to roll out lower fuel economy standards for cars, remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.