Cars: A Special Section - The New York Times When a Crisis Comes With a Reset Button Once a pillar of stable demand, Europe faces the same overcapacity issues that plagued the American market a few years ago, but now United States auto sales are soaring. Living With an Electric Car Many drivers, while still preferring electricity over gasoline, want to see improvements in battery capacity and car design. For Lightweight Cars, a Materials Race To meet the federally mandated fleet average of 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025, automakers are choosing from steel, aluminum and carbon fiber to make their cars lighter.