xcel
09-19-2006, 10:07 PM
U-M report says cars with improved fuel economy can boost profits at Big 3 by $2B. (http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060919/AUTO01/609190351/1148)
Greg Bensinger - Bloomberg - Sept. 19, 2006
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/2006_European_Ford_Focus_ST.jpg
2006 European Ford Focus - attractive, fuel efficient and more importantly, profitable.
Ford Motor Co., General Motors Corp. and DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler unit can boost annual profit by as much as a combined $2 billion by raising the fuel economy of their vehicles, according to a University of Michigan study released Monday.
The U.S. automakers would miss out on $3.6 billion in profit in 2010 should their fleets meet only the minimum government fuel-economy standards and gasoline costs $3.10 a gallon, according to the study by U-M's Transportation Research Institute.
Should U.S. automakers take steps to improve fuel efficiency, however, they would gain $2 billion in profit with gasoline prices at that level.
The study considered three gasoline-price scenarios in 2010 and whether the automakers used existing technology to maximize fuel economy.
The U.S. automakers have lost sales to Asian rivals over the past two years as consumers turned to smaller, more fuel-efficient cars and away from light trucks.
"What is surprising is that each automaker is financially safer if they follow a proactive fuel-economy strategy, regardless of what their competitors do," Walter McManus, the lead author of the study, said in the report.
U.S. automakers had the most to gain by boosting fuel economy because they depend on sport-utility vehicles and pickup trucks, which are generally less efficient than cars, for a higher portion of profit than do Asian rivals, the study said.
Researchers found that Ford stood to reap the greatest gains of any U.S. automaker.
Japanese rivals such as Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. would see profits decrease by $800 million in 2010 if gasoline costs $3.10 a gallon and they don't work to maximize fuel efficiency.
McManus said U.S. automakers may profit from boosting fuel economy even if gasoline sold for $2 a gallon, the lowest price the researchers considered.
U.S. automakers would gain $1.3 billion in 2010, whereas Japanese carmakers may lose $300 million in income because their cars wouldn't have shown as dramatic a fuel-efficiency improvement, the study said.
Greg Bensinger - Bloomberg - Sept. 19, 2006
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/2006_European_Ford_Focus_ST.jpg
2006 European Ford Focus - attractive, fuel efficient and more importantly, profitable.
Ford Motor Co., General Motors Corp. and DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler unit can boost annual profit by as much as a combined $2 billion by raising the fuel economy of their vehicles, according to a University of Michigan study released Monday.
The U.S. automakers would miss out on $3.6 billion in profit in 2010 should their fleets meet only the minimum government fuel-economy standards and gasoline costs $3.10 a gallon, according to the study by U-M's Transportation Research Institute.
Should U.S. automakers take steps to improve fuel efficiency, however, they would gain $2 billion in profit with gasoline prices at that level.
The study considered three gasoline-price scenarios in 2010 and whether the automakers used existing technology to maximize fuel economy.
The U.S. automakers have lost sales to Asian rivals over the past two years as consumers turned to smaller, more fuel-efficient cars and away from light trucks.
"What is surprising is that each automaker is financially safer if they follow a proactive fuel-economy strategy, regardless of what their competitors do," Walter McManus, the lead author of the study, said in the report.
U.S. automakers had the most to gain by boosting fuel economy because they depend on sport-utility vehicles and pickup trucks, which are generally less efficient than cars, for a higher portion of profit than do Asian rivals, the study said.
Researchers found that Ford stood to reap the greatest gains of any U.S. automaker.
Japanese rivals such as Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. would see profits decrease by $800 million in 2010 if gasoline costs $3.10 a gallon and they don't work to maximize fuel efficiency.
McManus said U.S. automakers may profit from boosting fuel economy even if gasoline sold for $2 a gallon, the lowest price the researchers considered.
U.S. automakers would gain $1.3 billion in 2010, whereas Japanese carmakers may lose $300 million in income because their cars wouldn't have shown as dramatic a fuel-efficiency improvement, the study said.