corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards put in place by the Obama administration nearly six years ago – standards automakers claimed would’ve saddled them with $200 billion in compliance costs over the next 10 years – there’s more than a little out-loud musing as to whether something similar might be attempted for the Phase 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) rules governing heavy trucks, trailers and diesel-powered pickups.
Right now, the betting in the main seems that the Phase 2 GHG rules won’t be scaled back to the degree being witnessed for the CAFE standards and for perhaps the best reason: long-haul truckers especially could gain a lot of fuel savings.
At the 2017 Technology & Maintenance Council (TMC) annual meeting last week, a wide range of presentations delved into the costs and potential benefits associated with the Phase 2 GHG rules, much less their impact on specific items such as tires, wheels, and trailers.
But I think Wade Long – director of product marketing for Volvo Trucks North America – summed up the possibilities proffered by the Phase 2 GHG rules indirectly during a separate discussion regarding Department of Energy” projects.
He noted that Volvo’s Super Truck project achieved an average of 12 mpg in comparison to the 7 mpg notched by a 2009 model Volvo VNL tractor and standard trailer used as a “baseline” for comparative measurement.
That 5 mpg difference translates into about $17,000 worth of fuel savings per truck per YEAR, Long emphasized. That would be more than enough to offset the predicted direct costs of the Phase 2 GHG rules, which EPA estimated to be as follows: upfront price increases of some $11,700 for tractors, $1,200 for trailers, $3,400 for vocational vehicles, and $1,300 for pickups/vans.
[FYI: those costs would be felt in the wallets of fleets mainly during the implementation of the 2021 and 2024 portions of the Phase 2 GHG standards.]
Now, certainly, not all the technologies and tweaks deployed for Super Trucks can be directly transitioned onto commercial vehicles operating in the real world. Yet those Super Trucks are the “test beds” upon which OEMs determine whether fuel-saving improvements make the grade in terms of practicality, payback, reliability, etc.
To read the full story, visit http://fleetowner.com/blog/will-phase-2-ghg-rules-be-reconsidered.