Last week, President Donald Trump’s administration proposed loosening federal fuel-economy standards, giving automakers a reprieve from stringent emissions rules and prompting some analysts and environmental organizations to say the change could mean the return of the gas-guzzler.

Trump and Department of Transportation officials said automakers might now be required to meet an average of 34.5 mpg across 2031 model-year vehicles, a marked slackening of Biden-era rules that require an average of 50.4 mpg across those vehicles for the same year.

“People were brainwashed. This is a green new scam, and people were paying too much for a car that didn’t work as well,” said Trump during a press conference at the beginning of December. “All of the nonsense is being taken out of the cars,” he added.

As is getting usual, car company CEO’s were falling over each other to lick Trump’s boots and applaud the decision. “Today is a victory for common sense and affordability,” Ford CEO Jim Farley said during comments at the press conference. ”We believe that people should be able to make a choice, as you said, Mr. President, and we will invest more in affordable vehicles.”

Other automakers also indicated support for the reduced regulations. Representatives from Ford, Stellantis, and General Motors joined Trump in the Oval Office for the announcement. National Automobile Dealers Association Chairman Tom Castriota also attended the event.

National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) President Mike Stanton also applauded the announcement, saying the proposed CAFE standards changes represent a “milestone.” “We commend the Trump Administration for its leadership on the issue,” he said in a statement. “If finalized, these regulations would craft standards that can be met with a range of technologies.”

No EVs anymore…

The proposed changes to the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards align with the administration’s broader push to unwind federal support for the electric vehicle transition.

Earlier this year, Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress eliminated federal tax credits for EVs. They revoked California’s ability to write strict vehicle emissions standards that extended to large swaths of the country via agreements between states.

While the most recent reduction in fuel requirements continues the unwinding of regulations, Congress also ended fuel-economy penalties for automakers through a massive tax-and-spending law that passed this year. That means the enforcement mechanism for the standards no longer exists.

That change also eliminated a market for EV credits. EV manufacturers, who by the nature of their vehicles exceeded the required fuel economy averages, could sell credits to companies that didn’t comply with CAFE rules.

…but V-8s

Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa, speaking at a Goldman Sachs conference a day after the White House announcement, said the opportunities to boost production of V-8-powered vehicles are “just huge.” Filosa said Stellantis will likely expand output of its large engines, saying they could be added to vehicles across multiple brands.

“It’s a lever we intend to pull very hard next year and in the years to come,” Filosa said. “Not only through V-8, but in general for ICE, we see a huge mix opportunity in North America. It’s not just a profit calculation, it’s a volume opportunity because it’s what customers want there.”

The industry’s presence at the announcement shows how times have changed. During the first Trump administration, six automakers struck voluntary agreements with the state of California to buck the rollback of emissions rules.

Now, some of those same automakers stood physically and philosophically with the president in his latest move to reduce support for EVs and encourage the sale of more profitable gasoline-powered vehicles.

Environmental protest

Of course, environmental groups vigorously criticized the announcement.

“Americans support strong fuel economy standards, with 96% of American drivers saying that fuel economy is at least somewhat important to them when considering what vehicle to purchase or lease, and two-thirds saying that fuel economy is very important or extremely important,” Will Anderson, a zero emissions vehicle policy advocate, said on Public Citizen’s Climate Program.

“This is another Trump shell game that shuffles money to Trump’s oil and gas cronies at the expense of Americans’ wallets, health, and air quality,” he added.

First emissions, now safety

The 14th of January could be quite an important day for the auto business in the U.S. That’s when Senate Republicans plan to hold a hearing on one of the industry’s most significant issues: vehicle affordability.

Reportedly, senators plan to argue that expanded vehicle safety technology has driven up costs without equal benefits. The Wall Street Journal, citing anonymous sources, reported that Republicans on the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee “plan to contend that the most effective vehicle-safety advancements, seatbelts and improved crashworthiness, occurred between the 1960s and 1980s, and that benefits have dwindled since.”

GOP members want to roll back vehicle safety regulations, as they and the Trump administration scaled back emissions rules this year, The Journal reported. In other words, cut the red tape regardless of societal costs and leave safety to the market.

Consumer preferences

New-vehicle affordability is no doubt a considerable challenge, but improved safety equipment isn’t the main reason prices have risen more than 30% since before the pandemic.

New technologies contribute to rising collision repair costs, but those are offset by collision prevention and mitigation of more serious crashes through automatic emergency braking and obstacle avoidance, for example.

If the senators want to dive into why vehicles have become so expensive, they should start by looking at consumers’ buying preferences. For more than a decade, consumers in the U.S. have turned away from smaller, more economical sedans in favor of larger and larger pickups, SUVs, and crossovers.

Manufacturers jumped on this bandwagon to increase profits and persuade customers that bigger is always better, cashing in on huge sums for the ‘luxury’ additions they added to their cars.