When I read articles like this I just get angry at how dumb the Bush administration’s policies seem. He’s promoting this pie in the sky hydrogen technology that, if implemented, will completely disrupt the auto industry yet he talks like raising fuel economy numbers will destroy the auto industry. He couldn’t appear to be in the oil industry’s pockets more if he tried. (What does hydrogen have to do with oil? Hydrogen is less efficient than gasoline and it takes energy to create it from water. Where does that energy come from? You guessed it, existing utility companies burning oil, natural gas, etc. Overall, hydrogen would make us less energy efficient as a country.)
One word: hybrid. It’s done amazing things with the new Prius and Ford plans on selling an SUV next year which will get 30-40 mpg. It’s a modification of existing engine technology (i.e. works in tandem with a standard gas engine) and has already been proven over the last 5 years by Honda and Toyota.
I say get rid of the special SUV category for fuel economy and call it what it really is: a car. Raise the fuel economy minimum 5 pts in 2009 and another 5 pts in 2014. By then, hybrid technology can be in every new car sold.