From their editorial today:

Policy makers could do even more to push consumers in the right direction by giving them a clear financial incentive to buy fuel-efficient vehicles. And that, in turn, could mean a gas tax — the most effective way we can think of to keep fuel prices high enough to make people think twice before buying a guzzler. One study of car sales from 1999 to 2007 concluded that a $1 increase in the price of gas cut the market share of S.U.V.’s by more than 11 percent and raised the market share of compacts by about 17 percent.
Any gas tax scheme should include some mechanism like tax credits to protect low-income consumers. But coupled with the new fuel economy standards, such a tax could take this country a long way toward reducing carbon emissions.
Drivers embrace fuel economy when gas hits $4 a gallon. Some device is needed to encourage them when it drops below that.

I wonder, however: Can the New York Times can stay in business under this plan? Higher fuel prices would drastically increase the cost of producing and distributing the Times and hit almost every aspect of the Times’ business. Lower-margin smaller cars would mean less advertising money from the auto industry, as well.