EPA

The EPA may cut the amount of ethanol required to be blended with gasoline from the amount originally specified in a 2007 law.

Automakers have fired the latest salvo in the ongoing battle against ethanol blends in gasoline, saying it can damage engine components. That's despite several manufacturers approving it for use in their newest vehicles--adding to the confusion over ethanol in pump gasoline. According to The...

A case before the Supreme Court challenges EPA regulations of greenhouse gas emissions, but not those involving cars.

The rules for vehicle gas mileage are pretty much locked down from now through 2025. The math is complicated, but vehicles in 2025 will have to reach a fleet-wide average of 54.5 mpg by 2025--or about 42 mpg on their window stickers. So what's the next battleground over reducing emissions? It's...

Stricter limits on new power plant greenhouse gas emissions and a weak export market have put the American coal industry on the ropes.

Audi and corporate parent Volkswagen believe clean diesels are being ignored by government regulations and incentive programs that promote hybrids and pure electric cars.

It's frustrating buying a car to find its gas mileage falls short of the official EPA ratings, and it's a frustration quite familiar to owners of the 2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid. The car was launched to much fanfare with its 47 mpg combined rating--identical to that of the Ford Fusion Hybrid--but it...

What cars available in dealers today make the most efficient use of energy? The answer turns out to be four battery-electric vehicles and one plug-in hybrid. Gasoline and diesel cars don't even come close; internal combustion engines waste two-thirds to three-quarters of the energy in their fuel on...

For Ford, it's all about "customer satisfaction"--a phrase it's repeated hundreds of times over the past nine months. During that time, it's grappled with the realization that not only did its 2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid not achieve anywhere close to its 47-mpg EPA rating, but the shortfall had made...

A new bill in the U.S. Senate would amend Corporate Average Fuel Economy rules to encourage production of a new class of natural-gas vehicles with "reserve" gasoline tanks. As demonstrated in a drive of prototype vehicles earlier this year, the range-extended natural gas cars would run for perhaps...

Name one car convenience feature you absolutely couldn't live without, and it'd probably be air conditioning. Whether you live in a hot or cold climate its cooling and demisting benefits can't be understated--it has safety benefits as much as comfort and convenience ones. It also has an effect on...

Every now and then, EPA gas-mileage ratings--and cars that notably fail to achieve them in real-world use--burst into public awareness. Hyundai and Kia had to agree to reduced ratings and send refunds to buyers after admitting to testing-procedure errors following an EPA investigation. But do...

Your mileage may vary. We've heard it for years, we all know it's true, and yet we put our trust in the EPA's fuel-efficiency ratings as a guide to what kind of gas mileage a car will really get. Now, two cars--the 2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid and the 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid--have brought the failings of...

You most likely know by now that fuel efficiency is slated to double in new vehicles by 2025. What you may not know is how much that will cost you when you buy a new car in future years. Thousands of real dollars The EPA has long estimated that a new vehicle will cost about $3,000 more in real...

It's long been known that Lisa Jackson, the current administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, would step down now that President Obama is in his second term. But while Jackson had four years in the spotlight, somewhat less is known about Gina McCarthy, the woman designated to...

"Cleaner cars need cleaner fuels"--that's the message from a group of automakers in support of new EPA rules to clean up gasoline. The Environmental Protection Agency will today move ahead with rules requiring cleaner gasoline nationwide, with huge potential environmental benefits. According to a...

Since 2007, U.S. fuel producers have been required by law to include more and more ethanol and other biofuels in their blends. Now, Pike Research suggests, the biofuels mandate enacted as part of the 2007 U.S. Energy Act may be vulnerable to renewed political pressure. Pike notes that the drawbacks...

Cars of the future--especially those from the past--always exert a powerful pull on our imaginations. They range from the outlandish (no wheels) to the bizarre (extreme styling exercises) to the jaw-dropping (powered by tiny nuclear powerplants). While the Fifties and Sixties may have been the...

Following EPA head Lisa Jackson's resignation at the end of December, President Obama will nominate Gina McCarthy as her successor. McCarthy will become the Environmental Protection Agency's new administrator, following her role as head of the air and radiation office. A White House official has...

Obviously, fuel economy will be an increasingly big deal in years to come. The gas-mileage ratings of new cars and trucks must double (and then some) between last year and 2025. But as two recent news events pointed out once again, EPA mileage ratings on the window stickers of new cars may not be...