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Fleets can save fuel — possibly by as much as 5% — by “overspec’ing” engines, according to PHH FirstFleet, an asset, financial and technology management company for fleets.

General Motors Corp. said it is testing a combustion process in concept cars that could raise fuel economy by 15% over current conventional engines, the Associated Press reported.

Crude oil rose almost $2 to close at more than $73 a barrel Wednesday, a three-week high, following a Department of Energy report that showed oil and gasoline inventories fell more than expected, Bloomberg reported.

Federal officials next month are set to unveil a requirement that automakers install side air bags by the early part of the next decade, the Detroit News reported.

Trucks built before 1994 would have to meet 2007 nitrogen oxide emission limits, according to a draft proposal released Aug. 17 by the California Air Resources Board.

Hino Motors and Isuzu Motors agreed have to develop cabs for heavy-duty trucks and research technology to trap emissions, expanding the two companies’ partnership, Bloomberg reported Monday.

The national average prices of retail diesel and gasoline rose last week, even as crude oil futures fell to an eight-week low after Hurricane Dean passed without any significant disruption to U.S. oil production.

Oil prices were steady Wednesday following a Department of Energy report that showed increases in inventories last week, Bloomberg reported.