EPA Likely to Adapt Proposed New Fuel-Economy Window Stickers

EPA Likely to Adapt Proposed New Fuel-Economy Window Stickers

At a public meeting this week in Chicage to take input regarding its intent to revise the fuel-economy labeling on new-vehicle window stickers, the Environmental Protection Agency said it's likely the look of the final product will differ from the early versions the agency unveiled earlier this year.

And the dialogue continues regarding one particular aspect: whether the new fuel-economy label should include a letter "grade" from "A" to "D" to give consumers a simple, at-a-glance method for evaluating the fuel efficiency of a particular model under consideration. Although most automakers and other industry interests reportedly oppose this methodology for being too simplistic an approach, a representative for Hyundai Motor America Inc. said the company might support a letter-grade rating - but only with key modifications.

The EPA is under congressional mandate to revise the longstanding design and information of the fuel-economy labels, which are required to be on every new light vehicle sold in the U.S. An EPA official told Edmunds.com's Green Car Advisor the agency is holding the public meetings - another in Los Angeles is scheduled for Oct. 21 - to increase the breadth of input the EPA gathers on the matter. In addition to the public sessions, the official said the EPA has received thousands of written comments.

More details from the meeting are available at Green Car Advisor.

Bill Visnic:  is an AutoObserver Senior Editor. Follow @AutoObserver on Twitter