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President Donald Trump criticized Ford on Wednesday for entering into an agreement with California to enforce strict standards for fuel economy.
The latest attack took place shortly before the administration decided to introduce new average fuel economy standards, or CAFE, that would significantly reduce the president's mileage requirements. Barack Obama. The agreement between Californian regulators with Ford, Honda, BMW and Volkswagen is more flexible than those currently in force, but stricter than those for which the current White House plan calls.
In a tweet, Trump said Ford's founder, Henry Ford, would be "very disappointed when he saw his modern-day descendants wanting to build a much more expensive, far less secure and less efficient car, because the rulers want to fight the regulators of California. "
The tweet referred to statements made last year by officials from the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which jointly regulate US fuel consumption standards. One of the key arguments in favor of the goal reduction of 54.5 miles per gallon set for 2025 was that it would result in more deaths on highways by lowering the cost of gasoline and fuel. thereby encouraging Americans to drive more.
This and the other arguments put forward by the EPA and NHTSA were ridiculed at the time by environmental groups, consumers and others. Most importantly, the automotive industry did not adopt the strong reduction proposed for CAFE, even though car manufacturers had wondered whether it might be necessary to make a more modest reduction in Obama era.
Ford and the other three manufacturers seemed to have found a happy medium in the deal with California. An important part of this agreement will allow builders to move forward with their electric vehicle marketing plans. Ford, for its part, has committed more than $ 11 billion in the development of battery-powered cars and has recently announced the signing of an agreement on the sharing of an all-electric platform developed by his rival , Volkswagen. VW, meanwhile, plans to produce around 50 different battery-powered cars by the middle of the next decade.
Trump's reference to the higher price of battery cars is correct at the moment, as battery vehicles typically cost thousands of dollars more than comparable gasoline models. But even this should become a debatable issue in the relatively near future. Mark Reuss, president of General Motors – who has not joined the deal with California – recently predicted that the costs would reach parity in the near future, perhaps before the middle of the decade. And that does not take into account the possible federal and state incentives, nor the low cost of energy of a battery vehicle.
For its part, Ford defended its decision to join the deal with California stating, "This agreement with California ensures regulatory stability while reducing CO2 emissions more than meeting two different standards," says the group. in a statement.
Car manufacturers need to plan their products and manufacturing strategies years in advance. Stability is therefore a key element. The automakers collectively fear that any reduction in fuel economy standards announced by the Trump administration will be quickly stuck in court and may be wholly abandoned if the president loses his bid for re-election the year. next. If this is the case, they may end up having to turn the tide once more.
California is not alone in trying to reach an agreement with the auto industry. At the end of last month, Colorado reached an agreement with key manufacturers that will see the state adopt the California rules for zero emission vehicles.
Industry analysts believe that most manufacturers will continue to use their current mileage and product plans as long as they do not see that Trump's expected turnaround will remain in place. Even in this case, the new agreements with California and Colorado mean that at least some manufacturers could stick to more ambitious goals.
The fact that the president has targeted only one of the four automakers involved in the deal with California suggests that he is pursuing an enmity that began when he stepped up his campaign for the White House. Trump has repeatedly called on Ford for its decision to end the production of several passenger car models, including the Focus sedan, in Michigan and move it to Mexico. The automaker has subsequently announced that it would not be content to clean up the planning of a second Mexican plant, but that it would completely eliminate the Focus and most other models of cars to focus on the best-selling SUVs.
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