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The publication of comprehensive fuel economy levels of more than 400 types of cars by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) early this month surely embarrassed many carmakers.

 

In China, producers usually inform consumers only of the much lower constant-speed fuel economy of their cars a theoretical fuel efficiency level hard to achieve under actual driving conditions.

 

Consequently, the gap between the fuel economy data the NDRC and carmakers provide has invited fierce criticism from domestic media against the latter.

 

However, it is misleading to take the NDRC's new fuel economy list as proof of carmakers' dishonesty.

 

Failing to tell consumers the whole truth about their products is certainly not a desirable way to do business. But as long as the country's law does not make it compulsory to give all the fuel economy numbers collected from different tests, carmakers can choose to give consumers the performance data that most helps their sales.

 

The significance of the authorities' first attempt to publicize car fuel economy levels lies not in exposing the promotional gimmicks of carmakers, but in awakening the public to the country's average low fuel efficiency.

 

As illusions about the high fuel efficiency of their cars are replaced with a better grasp of actual fuel consumption, consumers may at least tighten their purse strings before buying a car. When fuel prices keep rising, it will only be at consumers' cost to ignore the difference between the theoretical fuel economy according to carmakers, and the actual fuel consumption of their cars.

 

It will be even better if the new fuel economy list can galvanize the consumers into joining forces with regulators to press carmakers to produce more energy-saving cars.

 

China's rapid economic development has seen it increasingly become a nation on wheels.

 

Latest statistics indicate that domestic sales of passenger vehicles soared by 40 percent year-on-year to 3.04 million in the first 10 months of this year.

 

Cars currently guzzle more than three-fifths of China's total petrol output and one-fifth of its diesel output. As more and more Chinese families buy cars in coming years, it is estimated that the country's annual crude oil imports will grow to 190 million tons by 2010 from 123 million tons in 2004. Clearly, a higher fuel economy standard will be crucial to the country's preparedness for the growing demand of oil.

 

The average car fuel economy level in China today is still about 20 percent higher than those in developed countries.

 

The Chinese Government has made it a top priority to cut the country's overall energy intensity by 20 percent in five years beginning 2006. Further improvement of car fuel economy should definitely be part of the efforts to achieve that goal.

 

The car fuel economy list released by the NDRC can be used as a starting point to measure the mileage of how far carmakers have progressed in energy-saving.

 

(China Daily November 14, 2006)