“We’re confident that there’s a pathway to get to a program that the federal administration, California and the auto industry can agree on,” GM spokeswoman Jeannine Ginivan told Automotive News. “We really wanted to make sure we’re a part of that dialogue. That was a step we needed to [take] to be involved in that conversation.”
GM’s previous alignment with the Trump administration on the issue had seemingly been at odds with the company’s stated “zero-zero-zero” mission of creating a world free of emissions, crashes and congestion.
In a letter to environmental groups last week, CEO Mary Barra said GM was inspired by Biden’s plan to expand vehicle electrification, create a million jobs related to electric vehicles and install 550,000 charging stations. GM has committed $27 billion toward electric and autonomous vehicles.
In the letter, Barra urged other automakers that in October 2019 had joined GM in backing the Trump administration’s efforts, including Toyota Motor Corp. and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, to withdraw that support.
Toyota, in a statement, said it has long supported improvements in fuel economy standards and is assessing the situation. The company said it remains “committed to our goal of a consistent, unitary set of fuel economy standards applicable in all 50 states.”
