Good news from the University of Michigan –
The average fuel economy (window-sticker value) of new vehicles sold in the U.S. in April was 23.9 MPG–up 3.8 MPG (or 19%) from the value in October 2007 (the first month of our monitoring). However, the fuel economy in April was down 0.2 MPG from March, likely reflecting the slight reduction in the price of gasoline towards the end of April. For the description of the calculations and the recent MPG values, please visit http://www.umich.edu/~umtriswt/EDI_sales-weighted-mpg.html .
The Eco-Driving Index (EDI)–an index that estimates the average monthly emissions generated by an individual U.S. driver–stood at 0.81 in February 2012 (an improvement of 19% since October 2007). The EDI takes into account both vehicle fuel economy and distance driven (the latter relying on data that are published with a two-month lag). Please visit http://www.umich.edu/~umtriswt/EDI_values.html for a brief description of what the EDI is, how it is calculated, and the current and recent values of the EDI.
The unadjusted CAFE performance in April was 29.3 MPG, an improvement of 4.6 mpg (or 19%) since October 2007. (This index is based on a different set of EPA ratings than the window-sticker values.) The description of the calculations and the recent values are available at http://www.umich.edu/~umtriswt/EDI_sales-weighted-CAFE.html .