The company said its nine-month net profit fell 57.5 percent to 162 billion yen ($2.12 billion), blaming the continued impact of the March 11 disaster, Thai floods and a strong yen.

Toyota said operating profit also slumped by 72.3 percent to 117 billion yen in the nine months to December, with revenue down more than 10 percent to 12.88 trillion yen on year.

But Japan's biggest automaker raised its full-year profit forecast to 200 billion yen, up 11.1 percent from the outlook it released in December, and its operating profit outlook to 270 billion yen from 200 billion yen.

The maker of the Prius hybrid and Lexus said it expected to sell 7.41 million units worldwide in the year to March, 30,000 units more than its December forecast, and to post 18.30 trillion yen in revenue.

"Toyota remains committed to pursuing an improvement of its earnings structure through various cost reduction activities as well as continuing the production recovery from the Japan earthquake and floods in Thailand," said Toyota senior managing officer Takahiko Ijichi in a statement.

Even if realised, the forecast figure for the full year's net profit would still be less than half that of the previous year.

As its recovery from a trying year gains pace and production normalises, Toyota is looking to win back customers with new fuel-efficient vehicles.

Observers said the forecast upgrade may be thanks in part to the US economy picking up at a faster pace than expected, citing recent better-than-forecast jobs data.

"Toyota must have expected demand to return after the earthquake and Thai floods, but I suppose it is recovering more quickly than the automaker had thought," said Tatsuya Mizuno of Mizuno Credit Advisory.

In the three months to December, the company saw sales grow 4.1 percent to 4.87 trillion yen year on year, while operating profit jumped 51.1 percent to 149.68 billion yen.

Net profit for the latest quarter shrank 13.5 percent to 80.94 billion yen from the previous year.

Mizuno said the high level of the Japanese currency would continue to be a headache for the company, and one that was difficult to predict.

"It is concerning that the yen is higher against not only the dollar but also euro," he said.

Toyota confirmed last month that its world group sales fell below the eight million mark in 2011, losing the firm its number one spot in the global carmakers' league.

Total sales were 7.95 million units worldwide, down six percent, Toyota said, after supply chains were disrupted by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, as well as flooding in Thailand.

The company had been the world's biggest carmaker since 2008 and sold 8.42 million vehicles in 2010.

But its 2011 figure leaves US giant General Motors, on 9.03 million sales, back in top spot after it emerged from bankruptcy, with Germany's Volkswagen in second place on 8.16 million vehicles.

]]> Wed, 08 FEB 2012 08:55:03 AEST Beijing (AFP) Feb 7, 2012 - US auto giant General Motors said Tuesday its sales in China fell eight percent in January from a year earlier due to fewer shopping days during the Chinese Lunar New Year holiday.

GM and its joint ventures in China sold 246,654 units, which was up 25.3 percent from the previous month, it said in a statement.

The Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, is the most important holiday in the Chinese calendar and many businesses close so workers can travel home to celebrate with their families.

It was unusually early this year, falling on January 23.

GM's sales in China hit a record 2.55 million units in 2011 despite a broader slowdown in the world's largest vehicle market as Beijing phased out sales incentives and some cities imposed restrictions on car numbers.

Foreign automakers have been outperforming their local rivals as Chinese consumers increasingly favour high quality vehicles with better safety standards, analysts have said.

Total sales in China rose just 2.5 percent to 18.51 million units last year, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said last month, compared with an increase of more than 32 percent in 2010.

China has moved to protect its domestic auto industry recently, slapping import tariffs on some US passenger cars and sports utility vehicles, and formally withdrawing support for foreign investment in the sector.

Several bids placed for bankrupt Saab: administrator
Stockholm (AFP) Feb 7, 2012 - Several companies have placed preliminary bids to buy bankrupt Swedish carmaker Saab, one of the administrators said on Tuesday, refusing to disclose their identities.

"We have received a few indicative bids," Hans Bergqvist told reporters in an audio conference, adding: "the indicative bids are interesting."

He would not disclose who had placed the bids, nor the amounts involved but reiterated that the aim was to sell all of Saab, which filed for bankruptcy on December 19, instead of selling off parts of the company.

He repeated that there were four or five parties interested in buying Saab. He said most of them were from abroad but at least one was from Sweden.

Swedish media have reported that Chinese carmaker Youngman placed a preliminary bid last week of about two billion kronor (227 million euros, $298 million).

Youngman has long been interested in Saab and tried to snap it up before it declared bankruptcy, but those efforts were thwarted by the Swedish brand's former owner GM, which balked at transferring the necessary technology licences.

Reports have also surfaced that Indian commercial utility vehicles manufacturer Mahindra and Mahindra has placed a bid as well.

Neither Youngman nor Mahindra and Mahindra has confirmed those reports.

Saab was already on the brink of bankruptcy when GM sold it in early 2010 to Dutch company Swedish Automobile (SWAN) -- at the time called Spyker -- for $400 million (308 million euros).

The past two years have been lined with desperate efforts and numerous failed deals to keep it afloat.

]]> Wed, 08 FEB 2012 08:55:03 AEST Tokyo (AFP) Feb 6, 2012 - Japan's Suzuki Motor said Monday its net profit fell 4.7 percent for the nine months to December and downgraded its annual sales forecast due to the impact of a strong yen and a slump in India.

The Japanese motorcycle and small car specialist said its group net profit came to 40.6 billion yen ($530 million) for the period, down from 42.6 billion yen a year earlier.

Operating profit for the nine months fell 5.1 percent from a year earlier to 87.7 billion yen on sales of 1.8 trillion yen, down 6.7 percent.

The profit and revenue decline was mainly due to slower sales in India and a sharp rise of the yen, Suzuki said, adding that it was also still struggling to recover from the impact of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

In Japan, sales fell 3.5 percent after production temporarily stopped due to the natural disasters, while the strong yen put the brakes on exports.

In the rest of Asia, Suzuki's sales fell 13.3 percent as India's largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki struggled, while the appreciating yen reduced the value of the company's repatriated overseas earnings.

Its sales in North America rose 7.5 percent but those in Europe fell 2.3 percent.

For the year to March, Suzuki revised downward its annual sales forecast to 2.5 trillion yen from its earlier estimate of 2.61 trillion yen. It has left its annual net profit forecast unchanged at 50 billion yen.

"We had aimed at bigger sales and profit by recovering from the East Japan Great Earthquake, but we have revised downward group sales forecast due to the impact of the strong yen and flooding in Thailand," the company said.

]]> Wed, 08 FEB 2012 08:55:03 AEST Tokyo (AFP) Feb 3, 2012 - Toyota Motor said Friday it aimed to sell 9.58 million units worldwide in 2012 after losing its number one spot in the global carmakers' league last year.

Last week, Japan's largest carmaker said it sold 7.95 million units worldwide in 2011, down 6.0 percent, as it wrestled with a strong yen while its supply chains were disrupted by the country's March quake-tsunami disaster and record flooding in Thailand.

But in 2012, global sales of the Toyota brand alone are expected to reach 8.58 million units, with its mini-car unit Daihatsu expected to sell 850,000 vehicles and truckmaker Hino planning to sell 150,000.

Toyota had been the world's biggest carmaker since 2008, but its 2011 figure left US giant General Motors, on 9.03 million sales, in top spot, with Germany's Volkswagen in second place on 8.16 million vehicles.

Toyota spokeswoman Amiko Tomita said the firm had been hit by one-off natural disasters in 2011, adding that it could benefit from a new car subsidy in Japan.

"We aim to sell more in emerging countries, mainly China, India, Brazil, Thailand, Indonesia," she said.

"In China, we hope to boost our sales by 10.0 percent. We are hoping to do better in the USA where the market is improving. Toyota plans to boost its sales by 16.0 percent."

]]> Wed, 08 FEB 2012 08:55:03 AEST Stanford CA (SPX) Feb 03, 2012 - A Stanford University research team has designed a high-efficiency charging system that uses magnetic fields to wirelessly transmit large electric currents between metal coils placed several feet apart. The long-term goal of the research is to develop an all-electric highway that wirelessly charges cars and trucks as they cruise down the road.

The new technology has the potential to dramatically increase the driving range of electric vehicles and eventually transform highway travel, according to the researchers. Their results are published in the journal Applied Physics Letters (APL).

"Our vision is that you'll be able to drive onto any highway and charge your car," said Shanhui Fan, an associate professor of electrical engineering. "Large-scale deployment would involve revamping the entire highway system and could even have applications beyond transportation."

Driving range
A wireless charging system would address a major drawback of plug-in electric cars - their limited driving range. The all-electric Nissan Leaf, for example, gets less than 100 miles on a single charge, and the battery takes several hours to fully recharge.

A charge-as-you-drive system would overcome these limitations. "What makes this concept exciting is that you could potentially drive for an unlimited amount of time without having to recharge," said APL study co-author Richard Sassoon, the managing director of the Stanford Global Climate and Energy Project (GCEP), which funded the research. "You could actually have more energy stored in your battery at the end of your trip than you started with."

The wireless power transfer is based on a technology called magnetic resonance coupling. Two copper coils are tuned to resonate at the same natural frequency - like two wine glasses that vibrate when a specific note is sung.

The coils are placed a few feet apart. One coil is connected to an electric current, which generates a magnetic field that causes the second coil to resonate. This magnetic resonance results in the invisible transfer of electric energy through the air from the first coil to the receiving coil.

"Wireless power transfer will only occur if the two resonators are in tune," Fan noted. "Objects tuned at different frequencies will not be affected."

In 2007, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology used magnetic resonance to light a 60-watt bulb. The experiment demonstrated that power could be transferred between two stationary coils about six feet apart, even when humans and other obstacles are placed in between.

"In the MIT experiment, the magnetic field appeared to have no impact on people who stood between the coils," Fan said. "That's very important in terms of safety. "

Wireless charging
The MIT researchers have created a spinoff company that's developing a stationary charging system capable of wirelessly transferring about 3 kilowatts of electric power to a vehicle parked in a garage or on the street.

Fan and his colleagues wondered if the MIT system could be modified to transfer 10 kilowatts of electric power over a distance of 6.5 feet - enough to charge a car moving at highway speeds. The car battery would provide an additional boost for acceleration or uphill driving.

Here's how the system would work: A series of coils connected to an electric current would be embedded in the highway. Receiving coils attached to the bottom of the car would resonate as the vehicle speeds along, creating magnetic fields that continuously transfer electricity to charge the battery.

To determine the most efficient way to transmit 10 kilowatts of power to a real car, the Stanford team created computer models of systems with metal plates added to the basic coil design.

"Asphalt in the road would probably have little effect, but metallic elements in the body of the car can drastically disturb electromagnetic fields," Fan explained. "That's why we did the APL study - to figure out the optimum transfer scheme if large metal objects are present."

Using mathematical simulations, postdoctoral scholars Xiaofang Yu and Sunil Sandhu found the answer: A coil bent at a 90-degree angle and attached to a metal plate can transfer 10 kilowatts of electrical energy to an identical coil 6.5 feet away.

"That's fast enough to maintain a constant speed," Fan said. "To actually charge the car battery would require arrays of coils embedded in the road. This wireless transfer scheme has an efficiency of 97 percent." Wireless future

Fan and his colleagues recently filed a patent application for their wireless system. The next step is to test it in the laboratory and eventually try it out in real driving conditions. "You can very reliably use these computer simulations to predict how a real device would behave," Fan said.

The researchers also want to make sure that the system won't affect drivers, passengers or the dozens of microcomputers that control steering, navigation, air conditioning and other vehicle operations.

"We need to determine very early on that no harm is done to people, animals, the electronics of the car or to credit cards in your wallet," said Sven Beiker, executive director of the Center for Automotive Research at Stanford (CARS).

Although a power transfer efficiency of 97 percent is extremely high, Beiker and his colleagues want to be sure that the remaining 3 percent is lost as heat and not as potentially harmful radiation.

Some transportation experts envision an automated highway system where driverless electric vehicles are wirelessly charged by solar power or other renewable energy sources. The goal would be to reduce accidents and dramatically improve the flow of traffic while lowering greenhouse gas emissions.

Beiker, who co-authored the APL study, said that wireless technology might one day assist GPS navigation of driverless cars. "GPS has a basic accuracy of 30-40 feet," he said.

"It tells you where you are on the planet, but for safety, you want to make sure that your car is in the center of the lane." In the proposed system, the magnetic fields could also be used to control steering, he explained. Since the coils would be in the center of the lane, they could provide very precise positioning at no extra cost.

The researchers also have begun discussions with Michael Lepech, an assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering, to study the optimal layout of roadbed transmitters and determine if rebar and other metals in the pavement will reduce efficiency.

"We have the opportunity to rethink how electric power is delivered to our cars, homes and work," Fan said. "We're used to thinking about power delivery in terms of wires and plugging things into the wall. Imagine that instead of wires and plugs, you could transfer power through a vacuum. Our work is a step in that direction."

]]> Wed, 08 FEB 2012 08:55:03 AEST Sydney (AFP) Feb 2, 2012 - Auto maker Holden said Thursday it would cut around 100 jobs, blaming the strength of the Australian dollar, one week after fellow car giant Toyota sacked 350 workers.

Holden, an Australian subsidiary of US giant General Motors, said it would scale down production to a single shift at its Elizabeth plant in South Australia to "manage the impact of the high Australian dollar".

Managing director Mike Devereux said the changes would result in losses "around the order of 100 or so casual and flexible workers" from the company's workforce of around 5,000 people nationwide.

"At the current exchange rate we won't be able to realise further growth in our export programmes so the shift changes allow us to maintain production levels and do it more efficiently," Devereux said in a statement.

The Australian dollar has traded near or above parity with the greenback for more than 12 months and it is at a 40 percent premium to its long-term average, with Canberra seeing a strong currency as the new norm.

But the exchange rate has hit some local industries hard, particularly manufacturing, with steelmakers and now the auto sector shedding jobs in a bid to stay afloat.

Manufacturing Minister Kim Carr said Holden's job losses were a direct result of softer exports due to "the changes in the value of the Australian dollar."

"We are simply not exporting as many cars to the United States as we would have hoped to," Carr told reporters.

"We have to adjust to a much lower volume environment as a direct result of the changes that have occurred with the value of the Australian dollar."

Toyota Australia sacked 350 workers last week due to "unprecedented" pressure on its operations from the dollar and its impact on export markets, saying a slump during the financial crisis had failed to reverse.

The Japanese automaker's Australian chief Max Yasuda said he was working to slash Toyota Australia's break-even point by 25 percent within two years while doubling the output of local manufacturers to remain viable.

"We have to make ourselves more lean, more efficient and a more effective company," he told the Australian Financial Review.

Yasuda said government support for the industry through co-investment was an "ongoing need and a long-term need".

Canberra extended Holden a Aus$200 million (US$214 million) credit line in 2009 after parent company GM filed for bankruptcy, handing 60 percent of the firm over to Washington.

GM reclaimed its title as the world's biggest automaker last month, successfully emerging from its financial woes to overtake German giant Volkswagen and Japanese Toyota in the race to the top.

Australia's automakers have come under increasing strain, with last March's earthquake and tsunami in Japan seeing Toyota Australia scale back production by 20 percent and third major player Ford sack 240 workers.

The government pledged Aus$34 million to help prop up production at Ford's operations earlier this month, saying it was vital to maintain competition in the local market.

That followed a multi-billion-dollar lifeline to the nation's ailing auto industry at the height of the global financial crisis, after Ford cut 450 jobs.

]]> Wed, 08 FEB 2012 08:55:03 AEST Chicago (AFP) Feb 1, 2012 - Chrysler led US auto sales growth in January with an impressive 44 percent jump that far outpaced modest gains at rivals Ford and Toyota and a drop at General Motors, industry data showed Wednesday.

It was Chrysler's 22nd consecutive month of gains and eighth month in a row of growth that came in at 20 percent or higher.

"We started the new year with a bang," Reid Bigland, head of Chrysler's US sales, said in a statement.

"In January, we continued building on the sales momentum that we generated during 2011 with our 16 all-new or significantly refreshed products."

The strong sales results come as Detroit's number three carmaker posted its first annual profit since emerging from a government-backed bankruptcy in 2009 and vowed to multiply profits eight times in 2012 to around $1.5 billion.

Chrysler, controlled by Italy's Fiat, reported January sales of 101,149, driven largely by strong sedan sales -- which jumped 137 percent from a year earlier. Truck sales were also strong, rising 25 percent.

Ford also posted its best January since 2008, the beginning of a deep economic downturn, as sales rose 7.4 percent to 136,710 vehicles.

Car sales drove Ford's gains, with the Focus contributing to 30 percent of January's growth after rising 60 percent to 14,400.

But with weakness in other sedans, total car sales rose just 2.4 percent while sport utility sales grew 12.2 percent and truck sales rose 7.9 percent.

GM said it was "not at all disappointed" in its six percent drop to 167,962 vehicles, which came in above forecasts and was due in part to a comparison with a "very strong" January in 2011.

"The strength that the economy and the auto industry showed in the fourth quarter carried into January, so we believe the year is off to a good start," said Don Johnson, head of GM's US sales.

"In 2012, we will strengthen our position with more new products, an even better dealership experience and reinforce the disciplined 'go to market' strategy that helped us grow profitably in the United States in 2011."

GM forecast that industry sales will come in essentially flat compared with December, with a seasonally adjusted, annualized sales rate of 13.5 million vehicles.

Total industry sales are forecast to grow 5.8 percent from January 2011 to 866,655 vehicles in January, according to Edmunds.com.

Final sales results were expected later Wednesday.

Toyota -- which has finally restocked dealer lots after supplies were smashed by the devastating Japanese quake and tsunami -- saw sales rise 7.5 percent to 124,540 vehicles.

"This month's results show that the all-new Camry is a hit, attracting both new and loyal customers with its class-leading performance and value," said Bob Carter general manager of Toyota Motor Sales USA.

"Our focus on delivering the best new products will continue as we enter the most aggressive launch of new vehicles in Toyota's history."

Honda, which was also hit by supply problems, posted an 8.8 percent gain to of 83,009 vehicles in January.

"Honda's return to full strength on the manufacturing front is already beginning to pay dividends on the sales floor," said John Mendel, head of Honda's US sales.

Volkswagen, which is making an aggressive push into the US market as part of a goal to become the world's largest automaker, posted a 47.9 percent gain in January to 27,209 vehicles.

]]> Wed, 08 FEB 2012 08:55:03 AEST Tokyo (AFP) Feb 1, 2012 - Japanese automobile sales rocketed more than 40 percent in January after the government restored subsidies for eco-friendly vehicles.

Sales of vehicles with engine sizes above 660cc stood at 263,267 in January, up 40.7 percent on the previous year, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association said.

The figure includes larger vehicles such as lorries and buses as well as cars.

January was the first complete month of sales after Tokyo re-introduced subsidies for eco-friendly vehicles that can cut thousands of dollars from their price tags, in a move aimed at boosting the automobile industry.

The government gives a subsidy of 100,000 yen (about $1,300) for an environmentally friendly passenger car and up to 900,000 yen subsidies for trucks and buses.

Toyota was the biggest overall beneficiary of the move, selling 124,633 vehicles, up 47.1 percent on the previous year, but Honda and Isuzu sales went up proportionately even more, at 59.2 percent and 60.6 percent respectively.

During 2011 Japanese automakers suffered major blows from the country's earthquake and tsunami and flooding in Thailand, which both badly disrupted their supply chains, leading to Toyota losing its global number one spot.

The subsidy measure last ran from June 2009 to September 2010, during which it cost the government $7 billion.

To some extent the subsidies appear to distort the market and the timing of purchases, rather than necessarily creating extra demand. Sales in January 2011, after the last programme ended, were down 21.5 percent on those of January 2010, when it was still in place.

]]> Wed, 08 FEB 2012 08:55:03 AEST Chicago (AFP) Feb 1, 2012 - US auto sales in January hit their highest rate since 2008, driven by huge growth at once-troubled Chrysler and improving consumer confidence, industry data showed Wednesday.

"January auto sales blew past expectations based on the strength of the best line of products consumers ever got to choose from as well as the improved outlook for economic recovery," said Jesse Toprak, an analyst at TrueCar.com.

Total industry sales rose 11.4 percent from January 2010, according to Autodata.

But the big news was in the sales pace, which rose to an adjusted, annualized rate of 14.18 million vehicles. That's up from 13.56 million in December and the best performance since May 2008.

That is still down significantly from the 15 to 17 million vehicles sold annually in the dozen years leading up to the 2008 financial crisis, but a dramatic improvement from even a year ago when the sales rate came in at 12.69 million.

January is typically the slowest sales month of the year because so many buyers were drawn in by December's year-end sales or are waiting for new models to hit showrooms.

So Wednesday's results bode well for the rest of the year, especially since it comes after months of slow but steady gains as the US auto industry climbs out of the worst downturn in decades.

"The sales are certainly outpacing our expectations," Ford spokesman Erich Merkle told AFP.

A huge amount of pent-up demand is also fueling sales, Merkle said, because so many people put off replacing their vehicles in the past four years.

The average age of vehicles on the road recently hit a record high of 10.8 years and supplies of used cars in good shape has dwindled as well.

"This is a positive start as we begin 2012," Merkle added.

Chrysler far outpaced the pack with 44 percent jump in January sales to 101,149 vehicles.

It was Chrysler's 22nd consecutive month of gains and eighth month in a row of growth that came in at 20 percent or higher.

"We started the new year with a bang," Reid Bigland, head of Chrysler's US sales, said in a statement.

"In January, we continued building on the sales momentum that we generated during 2011 with our 16 all-new or significantly refreshed products."

The strong sales results come as Detroit's number three carmaker posted its first annual profit since emerging from a government-backed bankruptcy in 2009 and vowed to multiply profits eight times in 2012 to around $1.5 billion.

Ford also posted its best January since 2008 as sales rose seven percent to 136,710 vehicles.

GM said it was "not at all disappointed" in its six percent drop to 167,962 vehicles, which came in above forecasts and was due in part to a comparison with a "very strong" January in 2011.

"The strength that the economy and the auto industry showed in the fourth quarter carried into January, so we believe the year is off to a good start," said Don Johnson, head of GM's US sales.

"In 2012, we will strengthen our position with more new products, an even better dealership experience and reinforce the disciplined 'go to market' strategy that helped us grow profitably in the United States in 2011."

Toyota -- which has finally restocked dealer lots after supplies were smashed by the devastating Japanese quake and tsunami -- saw sales rise eight percent to 124,540 vehicles.

"January was an encouraging start to the year for both the industry and Toyota," Bob Carter general manager of Toyota Motor Sales USA, said in a conference call.

"We expect the gradually improving economy will continue to bring buyers back into the marketplace, at the same time our influx of new models are arriving at dealership."

Honda, which was also hit by supply problems, posted a nine percent gain to 83,009 vehicles in January.

"Honda's return to full strength on the manufacturing front is already beginning to pay dividends on the sales floor," said John Mendel, head of Honda's US sales.

Volkswagen, which is making an aggressive push into the US market as part of a goal to become the world's largest automaker, posted a 48 percent gain in January to 27,209 vehicles.

Korean automaker Hyundai and its sister Kia extended their recent gains, with Hyundai sales up 15 percent at 42,694 vehicles and Kia up 28 percent at 35,517.

Nissan saw sales jump 10 percent to 79,313.

]]> Wed, 08 FEB 2012 08:55:03 AEST Ann Arbor, Mich. (UPI) Jan 31, 2012 - New light-duty automobiles entering the U.S. market are more fuel-efficient and give motorists up to 1.7 miles per gallon more on the road than vehicles bought before 2008, a University of Michigan study indicated.

"Recent Fuel Economy Trends for New Vehicles in the U.S." reported on gains made as a result of automobile design and manufacture changes made in the past five years.

The report by Brandon Schoettle and Michael Sivak from the university's Transportation Research Institute indicated fuel savings in most types of vehicles bought during the 2008-12 period.

Vehicles using diesel and gasoline, the two dominant fuels, showed marked improvements. While gasoline engines showed the smaller increase, gaining 2.3 miles per gallon, diesel engines showed a much larger improvement, with gains averaging 9.8 miles per gallon.

The less prevalent vehicles using battery-electric and hydrogen fuel-cell technologies are rated about two to four times as efficient as gasoline and diesel.

The researchers looked at improvements in fuel economy achieved since 2008 in a range of vehicles, comparing savings in cars and light trucks.

They examined fuel efficiency by vehicle size class, transmission type, number of engine cylinders, drive type, fuel type and hybrid versus conventional vehicles.

The research on fuel savings comes amid continuing concerns on both energy dependency and greenhouse gas emissions.

Last year the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued a proposal extending a national program to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve fuel economy for model year 2017 through 2025 light-duty vehicles.

The EPA proposed national greenhouse gas emissions standards under the Clean Air Act, and NHTSA proposed Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act as amended by the Energy Independence and Security Act.

The standards proposed would apply to passenger cars, light-duty trucks and medium-duty passenger vehicles, covering model years 2017 through 2025.

The proposed standards are projected to require limits of 163 grams per mile of carbon dioxide in model year 2025 -- about 54.5 miles per gallon if the vehicles were to meet this carbon dioxide level all through fuel economy improvements.

The standards are meant to be applied across average industry fleet and include all passenger cars, light-duty trucks and medium-duty passenger vehicles.

Last week California's Air Resources Board approved historic rules that require 15 percent of new cars sold in California by 2025 run on electricity, hydrogen or other systems producing little or no smog.

The "advanced clean car rules" also require automakers to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent on all new vehicles by 2025 and tailpipe emissions of soot and smog by roughly 75 percent over the same time period.

The greenhouse rules are similar to new national rules being developed by the Obama administration and will result in new cars averaging 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025, double current fleet average for new cars.

Last year the administration also unveiled fuel-efficiency standards for heavy-duty trucks.

]]> Wed, 08 FEB 2012 08:55:03 AEST Subscribe to our daily selection of space, military, environment and energy newsletters responseText http://visitor.constantcontact.com/manage/optin/ea?v=0016gbbKsaiGSpQFojVO8ZoHw%3D%3D