Manufacturing News
September 30, 2026
September 30, 2026 · Statewide · Story 4 of 4
Trump Rolls Back CAFE Standards, Touts $100B Auto Investment Including Indiana
President Trump announced Saturday via Truth Social that his administration approved new, looser fuel economy standards replacing Biden-era rules that had targeted roughly 50.4 mpg fleetwide by 2031, and touted more than $100 billion in auto investment plus new and expanded plants supporting jobs in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and South Carolina. Trump said, 'Every manufacturer, from General Motors to Ford to Stellantis, has called me wanting to build here, and now they can!' and credited Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick; GM and Stellantis shares closed 3% higher and Ford gained about 1%, while Tesla fell 2%.
- Impact
- The new rule reportedly drops the fleetwide light-duty target to roughly 34.5 mpg by 2031, more than a 30% cut from the Biden-era number, and eliminates CAFE credit trading, a structural change that cuts off a revenue stream Tesla built selling compliance credits to ICE-heavy automakers while removing the regulatory forcing function that had pushed suppliers toward EV-compatible parts. Stellantis is already the clearest Indiana beneficiary, having committed $100 million at its Kokomo plant to produce the GMET4 EVO four-cylinder engine starting in 2026, meaning ICE and hybrid component production, not EV tooling, is the near-term winner in Indiana's supply base.
- Watch
- Pending litigation (California's suit against EPA in D.D.C. (Case No. 1:26-cv-02185)) that could restore state-level emissions standards and force automakers back into dual-engineering.
- For the huddle
Do we have capital already committed to EV-specific tooling that's now at risk of being stranded if OEM demand shifts back toward ICE and hybrid powertrains through 2031?
From the brief, September 30, 2026
- AES Indiana BlackRock Buyout Faces Bipartisan FERC Challenge
- Patrick Industries RV Merger Talks Shadow Elkhart Product Launch
- Accu Opens Indianapolis Shop as CAFE Rollback Gives Auto Suppliers a Longer Runway
- Trump Rolls Back CAFE Standards, Touts $100B Auto Investment Including Indiana
Related
- AES Indiana Rate Hike Fight Collides With $737 Million Google Data Center Deal
- Nucor's $105 Million Crawfordsville Expansion, SEL's $25 Million West Lafayette Bet, and Indiana's Industrial Property Tax Increase for 2027
- Dalton Foundry Reopening in Warsaw, Indiana Runs on a Different Clock Than the Automakers Buying Its Blocks
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