The U.S. Department of Energy and the EPA have developed window labels that show the fuel economy and pollution levels of used cars and trucks, similar to those found on new vehicles. The labels can be downloaded for use with used vehicles either on a dealership lot or online.
"When we talked with people, they liked the redesigned mileage stickers for new cars from two years ago but they wanted that information for used-car sales, as those make up three times as many sales as new ones," said Dennis Smith, national Clean Cities director for the Department of Energy.
Smith said that while dealers and individuals like the labels for used vehicles, they would not be required by law to post them on any used vehicle for sale.
"They will become very popular, though," Smith said. "Dealers had tried to do something similar in the past, but consumers were a bit skeptical. This lends an authoritative voice to the discussion."
Many used-car sales are conducted over the Internet and Smith said the focus groups that worked with the DOE and EPA said they would like something that they could use in an online ad.
"We made sure to make these labels available to be downloaded and used in online settings, where people can display their vehicles' information in a more formal way," Smith said.
The fuel economy numbers on the labels come from EPA ratings for each vehicle when it was new. The EPA says that if the vehicle was well maintained, the original fuel economy rating should still apply.
The fueleconomy.gov Web site allows users to find vehicles from the 1984 model year and newer and download and print the labels.
