That is all good but there are a few downsides to this which are apparent already. It is clearly hurting the oil production industry of the United States and has resulted in less spending on infrastructure like wells.
One potential consequence of this which hasn't been getting a lot of attention is that it may just end up impacting what could be something that actually went for the Obama Administration in light of so many setbacks such as the national debt, a foreign policy that has rewarded America’s enemies and distances our allies, and a recession that never ends because of high taxes and job killing regulations, which is the raising energy efficiency of vehicles to 55 miles per gallon by 2025.
But what if the industry cannot do this? It is good to have goals but this same government has taken America to $19 trillion in debt and devastated our health care system, is the government being hypocritical in not having decent goals of its own? What is the real unemployment rate? OK, let’s move on.
The reason for this is simple, with fuel prices going down because of oil shale development in states ran by Republicans (states ran by Democrats do not support oil shale development for irrational environmental reasons which is why these same states do not have the postive job numbers that Texas, North Dakota, and Pennsylvania does), gas guzzling vehicles were hot once again. These cars are huge moneymakers. The price of oil isn't going to climb for a while now. So how do fuel efficiency ratings come back on track? Here are 5 promising suggestions:
Stop Idling
The "start/stop" technology isn't brand new. It is one of the main elements of hybrid cars. When they stop, the engine stops running. This saves gas while it is in idle state. Once your foot is removed from the brake, the engine starts again.
It is rare to see this technology in gasoline vehicles. But that's changing. In 2017, Ford is adding it to its F-150 trucks.
Good Vibrations
German manufacturers Bosch are looking into using pedals to get people to drive efficiently. They aren't interested in shutting down engines. They want to signal drivers to stop doing the inefficient things like going quickly up hills or speeding off as soon as a light turns green.
They want pedals to provide feedback by pushing back or vibrating against their feet when they are wasting gas. They found that people responded to active pedals 10 times better than to dashboard alerts. Some drivers do this on their own but that is rare.
No More Side Mirrors
Even though they have been used for 100+ years, side mirrors do stick out like sore thumbs. It is only a matter of time before they get replaced by camera on the dashboard screen. One manufacturer recently revealed a mirrorless car at the CES.
But how is this related to fuel efficiency? It increases drag by 7%. This doesn't sound like much but with fuel efficiency, even the smallest of things can help though.
Smart Cruising
There are a number of cars which come with adaptive cruise control. This means cars will adjust cruising speeds so as to stay at a safe distance from all other vehicles.
This technology could be taken further with a sensor which incorporates road conditions and traffic conditions in directing cars to operate efficiently. It could help boost energy efficiency by as much as 19%.
Score Points for Money
There is an app available which makes truck drivers smarter with respect to improving driving efficiency. It is known as PedalCoach and has been developed by LinkeDrive, a Boston company.
It is described like Fitbit, but for drivers. It motivates them to continuously improve fuel energy performance. These Android devices are installed in the cab of the truck and uses algorithms for setting unique fueling goals for the drivers. It uses a simple interface which is easy for the drivers to follow and determine when they are in good or bad ranges.