Automotive Fuel Economy

Abstract

In this day of energy uncertainty our attention is sharply focused on every major energy user in the United States, and for that matter, the entire world. No energy consumer is immune from consideration, whether it be production of goods, home heating and cooling, or transportation. Clearly, one of the most important factors in the energy use equation is automotive transportation and in particular the automobile. The incentives to improve automotive vehicle efficiency are substantial and growing year by year. It can be reliably predicted that the cost of petroleum-based energy will continue to increase and the supply will remain uncertain since many of the principal sources of this energy form are in relatively unstable areas of the world. The ongoing political uncertainties in the Middle East and other developing areas that are net exporters of petroleum are before us daily in the news media. Even with the appearance of petroleumlike synthetic gasoline, diesel fuel, or methanol derived from coal or oil shale, little impact can be made on the basic supply structure in the next 10–20 years. It is in this period of transition that the free world is most vulnerable to dislocations in petroleum availability.