Obama to Announce Higher Fuel Standards Tomorrow

Here's an idea that's been lingering in Washington since about 1978.

President Obama is expected to announce a plan to raise fuel economy in cars. The administration wants cars sold in the U.S. to achieve a 35.5 miles per gallon standard by 2016, or four years faster than the current rules, according to the Wall Street Journal, among others. The WSJ has more:

"By 2016, if the new rules take effect as planned, new passenger cars sold in the U.S. will have to meet an average mileage requirement of 39 mpg, up from 27.5 mpg currently. Light trucks would have to deliver an average of 30 mpg, compared with about 23 mpg today."

Who knows? Soon we could be on par with China.

The new standards could help stem a danger of sectional differences in fuel standards. California and 13 other states have been given the go-ahead to form their own standards. By coming up with a more strict national standard, the states might go along. 

Can automakers do it? Hybrids and plug-in hybrids will help, although they do add costs. Several automakers will also likely eye technology from start-ups like Achates Power, which claims it can boost mileage to 100 miles a gallon with high-compression parts. We also might see more diesels here in the good ol' U.S. of A. Ford sells a diesel Escort in Europe that gets 65 miles a gallon and the new cars are cleaner than those 1970s era diesels from Mercedes.