The race for the designation of most effective Trump “hire” for the second term continues today with an entry from Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Lee Zeldin.
Zeldin has just announced plans to end federal incentives for automatic engine stop-start technology in vehicles, which he described as a response to widespread driver dissatisfaction.
As is often the case with the current Trump administration, Zeldin made the announcement on social media…bypassing the elite media. He posted: “Start/stop technology: where your car dies at every red light so companies get a climate participation trophy. EPA approved it, and everyone hates it, so we’re fixing it”.
There are so many reasons that the feature is unpopular with Americans, stemming from its origins with Obama and European auto requirements.
Automatic start-stop technology became popular in large part due to fuel economy and emissions regulations introduced during the Obama administration. Initially introduced by European carmakers in hybrid vehicles, over the past decade, it became common across many new models, including SUVs and pickup trucks. While it is not mandated in new cars, it has been widely adopted due to federal fuel standard incentives.The system shuts off the engine when the vehicle is fully stopped and restarts it when the driver releases the brake or presses the accelerator. Automakers claim the feature improves fuel efficiency and lowers greenhouse gas emissions.
However, many who have bought cars with the feature indicate it can be annoying or even dangerous. Others assert that the sto-start system causes long-term wear on engines and offers only minimal environmental benefits.
One real-world test from Jason Fenske’s Engineering Explained showed there is a benefit to the tech when you’re sitting stationary for extended periods of time, such as at a long traffic light. If you’re only stopping briefly, however (like for a stop sign), the benefit drops away.It’s also important to recognize that not all start/stop systems are the same. Many traditional internal-combustion cars with the tech will shut the engine off when you’ve come to a full stop, then switch the engine back on once you lift off the brake pedal to begin moving again.Vehicles with mild-hybrid electric assist will take that a step further and shut the engine off as you’re coasting to a stop, eliminating the rough sensation of an engine abruptly stopping. They’re typically much smoother on start-up, too, as the electric assist gets you moving off the line, giving the engine a chance to start after the car’s already started to roll forward.Many mild-hybrid-equipped vehicles will even shut the engine off while coasting, too, silently saving fuel in the background.
It must be noted that the EPA has never mandated stop-start technology, but it has provided automakers with “off-cycle credits”(extra fuel economy credits) for including it in their vehicles. These incentives were introduced as one of the many ludicrous climate-cultists polices that began to be implemented under Obama, cascading into the “Green New Deal” scam under Biden.
Because of these “incentives”, the start-stop feature became standard in a significant portion of new cars (about 65% of new vehicles sold in 2023 featured stop-start system).
It will be interesting to see what the portion of such sales will be when these “incentives” disappear as part of the Trump administration’s moves to “unburden us with what has been”.
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