DETROIT (AP) -- A lobbying group for 10 major automakers said Tuesday the government is underestimating the cost of increasing fuel economy standards and wants those standards to go into effect too quickly.In a 77-page response to a request for comments on the government's proposed new rules, the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers said the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's goal of increasing fuel economy by 4.5 percent per year between 2011 and 2015 "goes beyond what is technologically feasible and economically practicable."
"It would require manufacturers to expend resources at a pace that is excessive given the fact that the auto industry is already under economic stress," the alliance said.
NHTSA is aiming to implement a law passed last year by Congress that requires new cars and trucks to meet a collective fuel economy average of 35 miles per gallon by 2020. That law was supported by automakers.
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