CO2 Mandate Keeps Ford's Fields Awake at Night

While Any Number of Problems Can cause Mark Fields sleepless nights, at the top of the list is AB 1493, a proposed mandate from the California Air Resources Board that would allow the state to set stricter vehicle-emission regulations.

Should AB 1493 be enacted, it would greatly inhibit the types of vehicles auto makers could sell in the country's largest market, Ford Motor Co.'s president-The Americas, tells Ward's during the Global Automotive Conference.

“We're for improving fuel economy and reducing emissions, but we're for doing it at the national level and not the state level,” Fields says of Ford. “That's just a quilt-work of regulations that would not only put a huge burden on all of the OEMs but also restrict our ability to sell vehicles that customers want.”

And should California pass its own regulations, he says other states surely will follow suit. A better strategy is to continue to develop new technologies to reduce emissions and improve fuel economy.

Fields declines to reveal whether Ford is on track to meet new federal corporate average fuel economy legislation mandating a fleet average of 35 mpg (6.7 L/100 km) for new cars and trucks sold in the U.S. by 2020.

California's CO2 mandate requires auto makers to meet a fleet average of 36 mpg (6.1 L/100 km) by 2016 and 43 mpg (5.4 L/100 km) by 2020.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Transportation proposes boosting fuel efficiency 25% by 2015, which represents the first step in a broader effort to raise CAFE standards for passenger cars and light trucks over the next decade.

Fields says Ford continues to focus on increasing the number of vehicles that can run on flex fuels, such as E85, a mixture of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline.