Auto Execs Say Car of the Future Won't Be Cheap

SEE ALSO:Big Oil Benefits From "Divide and Conquer"

Washington DC December 6, 2010; The AIADA newsletter reported that it all sounds so easy: Impose higher average gas mileage standards on the auto industry. Motorists will not only save money, but America will wean itself off oil. There’s just one problem. In meeting the new regulations, cars could cost thousands more than buyers would ever save on fuel costs.

To get a look at the car of the future, USA Today gathered top executives from five major automakers – GM, Hyundai, Nissan, Mazda, and Volkswagen – at the recent Los Angeles Auto Show. What emerged from their roundtable was a vision of cars that are cleaner, more fuel-efficient, and more feature-filled, but perhaps smaller and less powerful. And significantly more expensive.

The inevitability of higher sticker prices, as federal gas-mileage rules tighten, looms large for an industry struggling to recover from the worst sales implosion in generations and attract more buyers.

Since modifying existing engines and other changes won't be enough, automakers are investigating and even field testing just about every alternative fuel technology around, from electric variants to hydrogen power.

Whatever that new technology is, it will cost more, according to a June study by the National Research Council.

Click here to read USA Today’s complete article on the expenses associated with improving American vehicle fuel economy.