EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has a new target: the start/stop technology that shuts off some cars’ engines at stoplights.
In a post on X, the social media network formerly known as Twitter, Zeldin on Monday said the EPA is “fixing” start/stop tech because “everyone hates it.”
The EPA has not explained what Zeldin meant by “fixing.” No federal law mandates start/stop technology in cars. We’ve asked the EPA what Zeldin meant, and will update this story if they reply.
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Road & Track notes, “the EPA does offer car makers something called ‘off-cycle credits’ that incentivize the use of start/stop technology, amongst other things that aim to reduce vehicle emissions.”
The incentive hasn’t caused automakers to build it into every car. Axios notes, “The technology was included in 65% of vehicles in 2023, up from 9% in 2016.”
More to the point, new cars that have start/stop tech include a button to turn it off. At press time, the most-liked reply to Zeldin’s post, which was too vulgar to quote here, noted that the tweet itself included a photo of the off switch.
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Drivers often turn them off because, in many cars, shutting off the engine also shuts off the air conditioner. Hyundai, however, recently solved that problem with its 2026 Palisade, proving that automakers can work around that issue.
In a 2023 study, SAE (formerly the Society of Automotive Engineers) found that start/stop tech could cut fuel consumption by between 7.27% and 26.4%, “depending on the amount and percentage of idle time during the test.”