White House Unveils Bold Plan for $100+ Oil: Make Every Gallon Go Less Far

There are two obvious ways to make expensive gasoline hurt less.

You can make gasoline cheaper.

Or you can make cars use less of it.

Washington has discovered a third option: make cars use more of the expensive gasoline.

With Brent crude still hovering around $102 a barrel, the Trump administration has finalized new fuel-economy rules that lower the projected 2031 fleet average from 50.4 miles per gallon to 34.9 mpg. The administration says the change will reduce automakers’ compliance costs and lower new-vehicle prices by roughly $1,300.

So far, affordable.

NHTSA’s analysis also estimates the new standards will save automakers about $1,289 per vehicle, while increasing the owner’s lifetime fuel costs by more than $1,600 and raising fuel consumption roughly 4.6% through 2050 compared with the previous standards. Reuters

This is apparently what affordability looks like when everyone involved gets to choose a different part of the spreadsheet.

The automaker saves money building the car.

The buyer potentially saves money purchasing the car.

Then the buyer spends even more money operating the car.

Everybody wins, provided nobody rudely adds the columns together.

There is also something beautifully efficient about loosening fuel-efficiency requirements during a period of expensive oil. Normally, high energy prices create an incentive to consume less energy.

The new policy introduces competition.

Save $1,289 now. Spend more than $1,600 later. Burn more fuel while doing it.

Finally, supply and demand are being attacked from both sides.

If gasoline costs too much, just make the tank empty faster.

Inspired by:

AP News - "The Latest: Trump administration lowers fuel economy standards" (September 28, 2026)