Regulators help spur US demand for green vehicles

By Richard Truett (AN)

Detroit, Michigan - Legislation from California-adopted by 13 other states-are driving all those new plug-in hybrids, electric cars and fuel cell vehicles.

The California rules will require the six biggest auto makers by volume to sell a total of 120,000 to 180,000 clean-running vehicles from 2012 through 2014. The range is based on estimated total sales in the 14 states.

The six auto makers that must comply with the rules are General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co., Chrysler Group L.L.C., Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc., American Honda Motor Co. and Nissan North America Inc. They can meet the requirements mainly by producing plug-in hybrids that get their initial charge from the electrical power grid.

A smaller number of vehicles, probably around 7,500, must be electrics or hydrogen-powered, according to the rules, which were approved last year.

California and the other states-Arizona, Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington-account for about 30 percent of the U.S. population.

Auto makers that sell fewer than 60,000 vehicles a year in California also are required to offer low-emissions vehicles. But they can meet the requirement by selling clean-running gasoline-powered cars called PZEVs, or partial zero emissions vehicles.

The rules purposely avoid a mandate for large numbers of electrics and fuel cell vehicles, according to Anna Gromis, an air pollution specialist for the California Air Resources Board.

That's because costs, technology, driving range and other factors likely would make fuel cell vehicles and electrics too expensive or impractical for widespread use. Ms. Gromis said auto makers can meet the California rules by selling or leasing fuel cell vehicles and electrics to fleet customers.

Auto makers are ramping up electric vehicle and hybrid technology. Toyota, Nissan and Ford, for example, plan electrics for 2012 and 2013. The Chevrolet Volt, a plug-in hybrid, is scheduled to arrive in showrooms in late 2010.

Nissan said it will sell the Leaf electric car starting in 2010 in a few states and then roll it out nationally in 2012.

Michael Love, Toyota Motor Sales' manager for regulatory affairs, said that “the way California has set up the rules, plug-in hybrids would likely appear to be one of the lowest-cost ways to meet the requirements.”

From Automotive News (A Crain publication)