The more sensible countries heavily tax fuel and have historically let the market determine vehicle fuel economy (correct me if I'm wrong). Consumers choose smaller, less-powerful (but more affordable) vehicles and don't drive them as much.

Americans can't stand to pay the true cost of anything, so rather than raising the price of gas, we spend vast sums chasing ever smaller incremental improvements in fuel economy. So consumers choose huge, powerful, expensive cars and then drive them everywhere.

This is one area of the economy where the inkjet printer model would actually be an improvement over the status quo.