“You know what I’d rather have them do — this will make my Republican friends puke — as gas is going to go down here now, we ought to just slap a 50-cent or a dollar tax on a gallon of gas,” Akerson said in an interview with The Detroit News. “People will start buying more Cruzes and they will start buying less Suburbans.”
Akerson’s remark has everything to do with the upcoming CAFE requirements starting in 2017 that will push gas mileage standards as high as 47 miles per gallon and even higher still to 62 miles per gallon by 2025. Such an increase will put a major strain on vehicle prices (and costs) — some estimates run as high as an additional $3,500 to $10,000 per vehicle — and would subsequently place more and more new vehicles out of reach for consumers, who would in turn purchase a more attainable used car instead.
We wonder how Akerson’s statement makes Suburban drivers feel. You know, the ones that actually need them. A Chevy Cruze doesn’t exactly seat a family of six, nor does it have the cargo capacity to carry the amount of groceries needed for six people — especially since the Cruze Hatchback currently remains unavailable to North American consumers.
Considering gas prices are hovering around the $4 per gallon mark, this might not have been the best time to say such a thing.
Source: The Detroit News
Comments
What a butt head! Jerk needs to leave now! We have other GM products that we need to sell! LIke a shit load of pickups that are not selling!
It makes more sense to raise the cost of driving than to make a company produce a car people do not want. Regulating a business on what it can produce is not a good tactic. It takes the consumer out of the Supply/Demand intersection. A gas tax could be used to fix our roads and bridges, where demanding automakers to build more MPG cars only raises the cost of a car, while the price of gas slowly creeps up with no additional benefit. I bought a bike after Hurrican Dennis in 2005 because of $5/gallon gas on the Gulf Coast…. I didn’t need the Gov telling GM to produce a 45mpg car to tell me it was expensive to drive.
Actually, I agree with Lieutenant Dan.
This has been a major point of debate among auto industry insiders over the last two (or maybe even more) decades.
Let’s face it: more expensive gas will make those who don’t need trucks or SUVs purchase more fuel-efficient vehicles. So instead of mandating these sky-high CAFE standards, artificially-higher gas prices will make consumers more personally responsible — since their own wallets will be at stake at the gas pump.
Actually, I agree with average joe Rob above. “I didn’t need the Gov telling GM to produce a 45mpg car to tell me it was expensive to drive.” We also don’t need the Gov. pushing citizen behavior through artificial means…. EVER.