80MPG Cars... I Don't Think So!

A story by AP reports that automakers probably won't meet former President Bill Clinton's goal of developing by 2004 an affordable "super car" that can go 80 miles on a gallon of gasoline, the National Research Council said Monday.

In its annual review of the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles, the council, an arm of the National Academy of Sciences, suggested the government and industry participants set new goals. That is already under way in the Bush administration. Administration officials have proposed a cut in the program's budget by $39 million, or 28 percent.

They say the partnership should focus on producing technologies that could apply to all types of vehicles instead of just an 80-m.p.g. family sedan. General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and DaimlerChrysler AG have each produced concept cars. But they are too expensive for most families to buy, and they run on diesel fuel that doesn't meet U.S. emissions standards. The council said it's unlikely those barriers could be overcome in time to get an 80-m.p.g. production prototype by 2004.