Filed under: EV/Plug-in, USA



Will October 23 be a day of reckoning for some US automakers? Could be, since that's when the California Air Resources Board (CARB) is meeting up and may tweak its mandates for zero-emissions vehicle (ZEV) compliance for some of the world's largest carmakers. Green Car Reports says the news may be good.

So far, the six largest-selling automakers in the state are selling electric vehicles in order to meet that mandate. While Nissan is easily meeting its requirements thanks to the Leaf, other models - like the Chevrolet Spark EV, Fiat 500E, Honda Fit EV, Toyota RAV4 EV and, sort of, the Ford Focus Electric - represent so-called "compliance" vehicles. Those models are produced in limited numbers (and, likely, at a pretty hefty loss) in order to continue having the privilege of selling cars in the most populous US state.

The October 23rd meeting, though, could change things for the so-called "intermediate" automakers like Jaguar Land Rover, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Subaru and Volvo. For them, CARB may adjust its mandate so that, instead of having to sell pure electric vehicles in the next couple of years, they can meet their requirements using plug-in hybrids, possibly with more of them than the EV rules had required. That's great for Mitsubishi, which is working to bring its Outlander plug-in hybrid stateside. Not bad for Jaguar Land Rover and Volvo, as both companies also have PHEVs in the works. As for Mazda and Subie? Well, neither of them have any plug-ins on the horizon, so it's merely California Dreamin' for them.How CARB's next meeting could dramatically change the EV landscape originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sat, 18 Oct 2014 09:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.



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