Photo via EveryCarListed/Flickr.

Photo via EveryCarListed/Flickr.

The average fuel economy for new vehicles increased 0.3 mpg to 25.4 mpg in July from June levels as a result of a lower proportion of pickups offered, according to the University of Michigan's Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI).

The July value is up 5.3 mpg since October of 2007, when monitoring began, according to Michael Sivak and Brandon Schoettle, UMTRI researchers who compiled the report.

In a related announcement, the University of Michigan Eco-Driving Index (EDI) — an index that estimates the average monthly emissions of greenhouse gases generated by an individual U.S. driver — improved to 0.82 in May, down from 0.84 in April (the lower the value, the better).

The EDI indicates that the average new-vehicle driver produced 18% lower emissions in May than in October of 2007, but 4% higher emissions than the record low reached in November of 2013.

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