The Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule III for Model Years 2022 to 2031 Passenger Cars and Light Trucks
Key claim: NHTSA is rewriting federal fuel-economy standards for passenger cars and light trucks for model years 2022 through 2031 and changing how vehicles are classified for compliance, reversing prior CAFE rules the agency says distorted vehicle design.
Abstract
(Rule · Transportation Department, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) NHTSA, on behalf of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), is substantially recalibrating the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) program to bring the program into compliance with the law and to remove previous regulatory distortions which have induced manufacturers to make design decisions that have neither aligned with market demand and the needs of American families nor have delivered the consistent improvements in the fuel economy performance of manufacturer fleets, as Congress intended. This recalibration finalizes amendments to fuel economy standards for light-duty vehicles for model years 2022- 2026 and MYs 2027-2031. This final rule also finalizes amendments to compliance aspects of the program, including to vehicle classification and other compliance pathways.
Why this matters
CAFE standards set the fleetwide fuel-economy targets automakers must meet for new passenger cars and light trucks, and a multi-year rewrite covering MY 2022–2031 reshapes product planning, pricing, and vehicle mix for a decade. Changing how vehicles are classified for compliance also shifts which models carry which targets, affecting the practical cost and feasibility of meeting the rule.