The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Transportation (DOT) have unveiled two proposed fuel economy labels that would appear on the window stickers of new vehicles, including one design that assigns letter grades from A+ down to D to indicate the vehicle's fuel economy performance. If adopted, the new label would mark the biggest change to the fuel economy sticker in 30 years.
"The old petroleum-centric labels just aren't good enough anymore," National Highway Traffic Safety Administration chief David Strickland said at the new label's introduction on Monday, August 30.
The new labels are necessary because of the increasing number of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles that are entering the marketplace, according to the EPA. Since these vehicles use fuel more sparingly — or not at all — new methods of calculating fuel economy are needed, the agency said. The EPA is seeking consumer feedback during a 60-day period to help it decide what elements work, and ultimately which designs to incorporate into the final label.