On September 28, 2026, the U.S. Department of Transportation finalized a rule resetting Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards for model years 2022-2031. The rule projects an industrywide average of about 34.9 miles per gallon by model year 2031, well below the 50.4 mpg average projected under the rules finalized in 2024. The standards apply to passenger cars and light trucks. Motorcycles are not affected because this federal fuel economy law covers only 4-wheeled vehicles.
The Motorcycle Riders Foundation (MRF) sees the rule as another action in defense of the internal combustion engine. Preserving the internal combustion engine is one of the 12 high-priority items on the MRF's 2026 federal legislative agenda. People working to end the internal combustion engine have used ever-higher fuel economy standards to force manufacturers into building electric vehicles. They set targets so steep that shifting production to EVs became the only realistic way to comply. The Department itself said the prior standards effectively required a switchover to electric vehicles that was out of step with market realities and customer demand.
"Motorcycles may be outside this rule, but riders shouldn't assume that will always be the case," said MRF President Kirk “Hardtail” Willard. He added, "Every push against the internal combustion engine has started with cars and trucks, and bikes are the logical next step. The MRF will keep watching closely and will oppose any effort to bring fuel economy mandates or EV requirements to motorcycles.”
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