Cleveland Business News reports that ChryCo will cancel its contract with Cummins for diesel engines slated to power its Ram 1500 line of pickup trucks. This news comes as OEMs are abandoning diesel trucks in droves. Ford and GM have recently backed away from diesel light-duty trucks, while Toyota and Nissan have canceled heavy-duty diesel truck plans. “From a business case, I don’t think anyone can make one right now,” says IHS Global Insight’s Paul Lacy. “We are still negotiating with the new Chrysler group,” retorts Cummins spokesman Mark Land optimistically. “I don’t think they’re forever gone. I don’t think they’ll just throw all of this investment money away.” Right.

California’s Energy Commission is examining the possibility of a government database and rating system for the fuel efficiency of car and truck tires, reports Modern Tire Dealer. “The foundation of a government administered product rating system is a comprehensive database providing reliable test results and objective information accessible to everyone. A solid analytical basis combined with full disclosure and transparency inspires the confidence required for a rating system to be successful,” says the CEC. “A ranking system driven by the ‘best in class tire’ can ignite a competitive spirit.” Under the CEC proposal, “all tires with an Rolling Resistance Factor (RRF) within 15% of the lowest RRF reported tire for that combined tire size designation and load rating will be rated ‘fuel efficient tire.'”

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Early reports on the new national emissions/CAFE standard seemed to imply that California would be barred from moving the goalposts again on emissions. Not so, it seems. Automotive News [sub] reports that California’s Air Resource Board (CARB) is preparing the next round of emissions standards, and (surprise!) they will become more strict rather than the other way around. Or, as CARB Chair Mary Nichols puts it, 2016 will see the emergence of “a much more stringent standard.”

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A joint EPA-DOT document (PDF) explaining the updated national CAFE/emissions standards reveals a number of the new loopholes that will help automakers slip under the seemingly high standard. To kick things off, the EPA/DOT remind the reader that new standards were assembled using “the art of the possible.” to wit:

“There is a wide range of technologies available for manufacturers to consider in upgrading vehicles to reduce GHG emissions and improve fuel economy.7 These include improvements to the engines such as use of gasoline direct injection and downsized engines that use turbochargers to provide performance similar to that of larger engines, the use of advanced transmissions, increased use of start-stop technology, improvements in tire performance, reductions in vehicle weight, increased use of hybrid and other advanced technologies, and the initial commercialization of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids. Although many of these technologies are available today, the emissions reductions and fuel economy improvements under consideration for the proposal would be expected to involve more widespread use of these technologies across the fleet.”

Unless they don’t feel like it, of course. Loopholes are just as important as technology.

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The NY Times is reporting that President Obama will announce new emissions standards tomorrow that are aimed at ending the discrepancy between Californian and national emissions standards. The federal effort will combine California’s emissions standards with the Corporate Average Fuel Economy standard, creating a unified national benchmark. This will force OEMs to clean up emissions by 30 percent by 2016, while preventing California from moving the goalposts again, say industry officials. The upshot? By 2016 car offerings must average 42mpg while trucks will face a 26.2mpg average requirement.

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The latest statistics from the Energy Information Administration show that diesel is actually .03 cents per gallon cheaper than gasoline on a national average. Whereas gas prices have risen considerably since their December low, the drop in diesel prices was slower, making the bounceback less extreme. According to CNN, the price parity can be traced to inventory levels. Gasoline inventory has been dropping bringing prices up more sharply. Meanwhile, diesel-making distillate supplies are increasing. Longer term, the Department of Energy expects diesel and gasoline prices to rise but not by as much as had been previously anticipated.

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In a follow up to E. Niedermeyer’s previous post, details have emerged about the scheme to give rebates to buyers who trade “clunkers” for new, fuel-efficient vehicles. FT.com (Financial Times) reports that the program will cost taxpayers about $4 billion and will spur, according Brian Johnson, an analyst at Barclays Capital, the sale of 3 million units in the “near term” (whatever that means). With the US’ SAAR projected at approximately 9 million, this is a very optimistic prediction.

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The Detroit News reports that the NHTSA’s upgrade of roof crush strength standards will add $1.4 billion to the cost of new cars industry-wide, but will save 135 lives per year. Based on the NHTSA’s numbers, the costs will come out to about $54 per vehicle in design costs and another $15 to $62 in added fuel costs. In other words, even the NHTSA admits that uprated roof strength tests do trade off with fuel economy.

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Automotive News [sub] reports that Ford has decided to shelve plans to introduce a diesel F-150 in 2010. Last spring, Ford demoed dealers with a 4.4-liter oil burning V8 F-150. It boasted an estimated 350 hp and 500 lb·ft of torque—more power and twist than the F-150’s 5.4-liter gasoline V8 while quaffing 20 percent less fuel. And then F-150 sales dried-up and gas prices cratered—especially relative to diesel. “No new date has been scheduled [for the diesel pickup],” Mark Fields, Ford’s president of the Americas, told Automotive News late last month. “We’re still looking at the appropriate time to do that. We’ve put it on the back burner for right now.” According to AN‘s source/speculation, the diesel F-150 has officially been delayed until 2013. “But it will likely be canceled outright unless diesel prices fall substantially below gasoline for a prolonged period.” And then what? You’d think Ford would want a fully developed, tried and tested diesel F-150 in their quiver ahead of any such completely unexpected development. Then again, money’s too tight to mention.

Everything has unintended consequences, but sometimes they are positive. A new study commissioned by T&E, the European Federation for Transport and Environment, says there is an overlooked element in the public discussion about corporate fuel economy. Lower overall fuel consumption as caused by more economical cars, T&E says, would lead to lower fuel prices. “Economic benefits of energy conservation policies in Europe are consistently underestimated. But until now very few have made the point that a policy-induced decline of demand for oil could also result in lower oil prices, and hence greater economic benefits.” They’re not talking about the flawed US CAFE system, however.

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Surprise! The day after the president told the world that his administration is ignoring public opinion and re-bailing out Chrysler and GM, the Chief Executive’s minions have revealed their new Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) targets. First, the dig [via the AP]: “Under the changes, which are slightly less stringent than those proposed by the Bush administration [emphasis added], new passenger cars will need to meet 30.2 mpg for the 2011 model year and pickup trucks, sport utility vehicles, and minivans will need to reach 24.1 mpg.” Why the roll-back? David Kelly, acting director of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, said Obama’s decision to adopt the old Bush figures “showed the agency had done a good job after two years of work. For as much as people wanted to criticize NHTSA, this is clearly the best step that is out there that is the best step to improve fuel economy and do so in a reasonable way that doesn’t force manufacturers into bankruptcy.” Right. Sorry, I forgot: can’t bankrupt Chrysler and GM. ’K. Math. Fallout. Jump.

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Autobloggreen recently got its paws on a presentation (PDF, read the whole thing) from the California Air Resource Board’s public “cool cars workshop.” And let’s just say the thing exudes the kind of bureaucratic overreach heretofore only imagined by folks sporting the latest in tinfoil chapeau. Here’s the logic: cars that get hot when they sit require greater air conditioning, which increases fuel consumption and (tada!) air pollution. And since architectural surface coatings are 25-35 percent reflective, there’s no reason not to require similar levels from auto paint, right? Skyscrapers, cars; potato, potahto. CARB will require vehicle surfaces to reflect at least 20 percent of solar energy by 2012, a figure that no black auto paint can currently achieve. One third of OEM palettes must meet the 20 percent mark by then, and all OEM paints must meet the goal by 2016. Oh, yes, and by 2016 even collision repair shops have to use the special paint. The only mitigation for these rules are if you sufficiently increase the Rd factor of your cars windshield glazing. And just to keep a song in your heart, “other compliance options are under investigation.”

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The $13K-$15K American compact market is going to get another player, as Automotive News [sub] reports that VW’s Polo is coming stateside. But VW won’t be selling the traditional Yaris-fighting small hatch version of the Polo here, says VOA CEO Stefan Jacoby. Instead VW is easing into the segment Toyota-style, offering an Echo-echoing four-door sedan version of the Polo alongside a “Polo Plus” mini MPV. “It’s more like a cross between a compact minivan and a hatchback. In other words, it’s more like the Honda Fit,” says Jacoby of the “American fatty” version of the Polo. Expect the Polo to be built in Mexico in hopes of keeping the cost down, a consideration that takes on more importance thanks to VW’s decision to focus on the sedan/MPV approach. “We have to come in at the sweet spot of this market or else it makes no sense—and we come too close to the Jetta,” says Jacoby. So why sell a sedan at all? More importantly, why go with the cheap Hecho-En-Mexico approach when it prevents the US Polos from offering the real jewels of VW’s small-car portfolio: high-tech engines like its direct-injection, turbo- and super-charged 1.4 TFSI.

Apologists for business-as-usual in the car game often took to blaming unnaturally high gas prices for last year’s trends towards smaller car sales and fewer vehicle miles traveled. When gas prices go back down, went the argument, Americans will go right back to buying thirsty SUVs and Crossovers and driving more miles. Not true, it seems. The New York Times reports that vehicle miles traveled (VMT) has declined for 14 months in a row now, despite the fact that gas prices are now hovering at about half of their peak levels from last June. “When the decline in American driving was first identified in late 2007, fuel prices were beginning to increase. The prevailing wisdom at the time was that the drop was due to increased fuel prices,” says Doug Hecox of the Federal Highway Administration which monitors traffic on America’s roads. The FHA estimates that VMT has declined by 115 billion miles in the period between November 2007 and December 2008.

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