Automobiles on Steroids: Product Attribute Trade-Offs and Technological Progress in the Automobile Sector
估计了1980年至2006年汽车行业的技术进步，以及燃油经济性、重量和发动机功率之间的权衡。研究发现，若保持1980年的重量和功率水平，燃油经济性可提升近60%。
This paper estimates the technological progress that has occurred since 1980 in the automobile industry and the trade-offs faced when choosing between fuel economy, weight, and engine power characteristics. The results suggest that if weight, horsepower, and torque were held at their 1980 levels, fuel economy could have increased by nearly 60 percent from 1980 to 2006. Once technological progress is considered, meeting the CAFE standards adopted in 2007 will require halting the trend in weight and engine power characteristics, but little more. In contrast, the standards recently announced by the new administration, while attainable, require nontrivial "downsizing.”