Administration estimates $1,300 price cut alongside $1,600 fuel-cost increase

Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the Trump administration’s rollback of fuel-economy standards could leave drivers paying more over the life of their vehicles and risk ceding ground to China in the global electric-vehicle market. In an interview with NPR’s Leila Fadel, Buttigieg, a Democrat who served in the Biden administration, challenged the administration’s claim that the change will make vehicles more affordable.

The Transportation Department estimates the rollback could cut the price of a new vehicle by about $1,300, while the same agency estimates drivers could pay about $1,600 more in fuel costs over a vehicle’s life. American automakers have broadly welcomed the change, saying the previous standards were out of step with consumer demand. Buttigieg said the $1,600 fuel-cost figure does not fully account for higher gasoline prices or tariffs affecting the auto industry and warned weaker standards could slow U.S. auto innovation as China expands its electric-vehicle industry.

Buttigieg centered his criticism on the administration’s own cost methodology. The Transportation Department estimates the rollback could cut the price of a new vehicle by about $1,300, while the same agency estimates drivers could pay about $1,600 more in fuel costs over a vehicle’s life. Buttigieg argued the fuel-cost figure does not fully account for higher gasoline prices or the tariffs affecting the auto industry.

Corporate Average Fuel Economy, or CAFE, standards require carmakers to meet certain fuel-economy benchmarks as an average across their entire fleets. American automakers have broadly welcomed the rollback, saying the previous standards were out of step with consumer demand. Buttigieg said the industry has historically resisted tougher fuel-economy rules before adapting to them.

On the question of global competition with China, Buttigieg warned weaker domestic standards could slow U.S. auto innovation as Chinese automakers expand their share of the global electric-vehicle market.

“Anything that means less innovation is going to help hand that advantage to China,” Buttigieg said.