Americans See Fuel Efficient Cars as ‘Patriotic’

Even 67 percent of NASCAR racing fans concurred that fuel-efficiency and patriotism go hand in hand, the poll said.

Reuters

Americans See Fuel Efficient Cars as ‘Patriotic’
Thu Mar 17, 2005 05:26 PM ET

DETROIT (Reuters) – Most Americans believe it is “patriotic” to buy a fuel-efficient vehicle to help wean their country off Middle Eastern oil, according to a new poll released on Thursday.

Some 66 percent of participants in the survey said they agreed that driving vehicles that require less fuel to run was patriotic, since it could help reduce the U.S. dependency on Mideast crude.

The survey, conducted for the nonpartisan Civil Society Institute think tank, also showed that 57 percent of self-described conservatives considered the purchase of a fuel-efficient vehicle an act of patriotism.

Even 67 percent of NASCAR racing fans concurred that fuel-efficiency and patriotism go hand in hand, the poll said.

Based on telephone interviews with 1,013 adults in private U.S. households, the poll was conducted on Feb. 10-13. Its margin for error was three percentage points.

The poll also showed that an overwhelming 89 percent of Americans agreed on the importance of government action to reach a 40 mile per gallon fuel efficiency level for U.S. vehicles, to cut greenhouse pollution as well as dependency on Mideast oil.

In response to rising U.S. gasoline prices, 50 percent of those surveyed said they had already purchased or were considering buying a more fuel-efficient car.

The U.S. rules that govern fuel efficiency, known as Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards, were first imposed in 1975 after the Arab oil embargo. The standards have remained at 27.5 mpg for cars since 1990 and at 20.7 for trucks since 1996.

In its annual fuel economy report last year, the Environmental Protection Agency said that in the 2004 model year, light duty vehicles sold in the United States were estimated to average 20.8 mpg. That was within the 20.6 to 20.9 range registered in the previous eight years but 6 percent below a 1987-1988 peak of 22.1 mpg, the EPA said.

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