50 Years of EPA’s Automotive Trends Report

This year marks the 50th Anniversary of EPA’s Automotive Trends Report. EPA’s partnership with the automotive industry was established from the very beginning, as part of the Clean Air Act of 1970 that tasked the fledgling agency with the ambitious goal of reducing car pollution. Since 1975, the Trends Report has been there to provide data, insight, and transparency, covering every new car, SUV, and light duty truck produced for sale in the United States. The report also provides a detailed look at how automotive manufacturers are doing under EPA’s current light-duty greenhouse gas standards.

Over time, the Trends Report has evolved, adding new analysis to incorporate the significant changes to the light duty fleet over the past decades. By understanding our history and by setting a common baseline for where we are today, the Trends Report highlights what EPA and the automotive industry have accomplished and provides insight as we drive to the future.

Over the past 50 years, cars have become twice as powerful and twice as fuel efficient—proving that progress isn't a trade-off. This interactive infographic showcases some of the automotive highlights over the same timeframe.

• Text-only version of this infographic

Light Duty Vehicles Heading in the Right Direction

The good news -- New vehicle CO₂ emissions and fuel economy have improved significantly over the past 50 years. The charts below are interactive so be sure to hover over data points to reveal specific values for each year.

Since 1975, vehicle miles per gallon in the United States has improved from 13.1 mpg to 27.1 mpg in 2023.

New vehicles in 2023 emitted less than half the CO₂ per mile of 1975 models, with a 31% reduction in tailpipe emissions since 2004.

Vehicles are becoming cleaner and more efficient, featuring an increasing share of electric, hybrid, and stop-start technologies.

Interested in diving deeper? Visit the Automotive Trends Report to view highlights from the most recent annual Automotive Trends Report, download the full report, and use our interactive data tools to focus on your particular areas of interest.

Additional data and information:

• Regulations for Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Passenger Cars and Trucks provides information on current and past regulations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the light duty sector.
• Fueleconomy.gov provides downloadable fuel economy data for all light duty vehicles starting with model year 1974. EPA compiles and has oversight of the data.