Last visit was: 23 Apr 2026, 05:55 It is currently 23 Apr 2026, 05:55
Home
Messages
Tests
Schools
Events
Close
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.

Customized
for You

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History

Track
Your Progress

every week, we’ll send you an estimated GMAT score based on your performance

Practice
Pays

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Go to My Error Log Learn more
Close
Request Expert Reply
Confirm Cancel
Back to Forum
Create Topic
User avatar
Bunuel
User avatar
Math Expert
Joined: 02 Sep 2009
Last visit: 23 Apr 2026
Posts: 109,778
Own Kudos:
810,770
 [14]
Given Kudos: 105,853
Products:
GMAT Club Tests Forum Quiz
Expert
Expert reply
Active GMAT Club Expert! Tag them with @ followed by their username for a faster response.
Posts: 109,778
Kudos: 810,770
 [14]
The United States would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline con 01 Apr 2020, 06:11
2
Kudos
Add Kudos
12
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
00:00
Start Timer
Pause Timer
Resume Timer
Show Answer
Hide
Show
History
D
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!

Difficulty:

15% (low)

Question Stats:

71% (00:53) correct 29% (01:07) wrong based on 459 sessions

History

Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
The United States would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress will raise fuel economy standards to 31.3 miles per gallon for passenger cars and to 24.5 miles per gallon for light trucks.


A. would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress will raise

B. will achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress were to raise

C. will have achieved a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress will raise

D. would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress were to raise

E. would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress were raising
ShowHide Answer
Official Answer
D
Most Helpful Reply
User avatar
Bunuel
User avatar
Math Expert
Joined: 02 Sep 2009
Last visit: 23 Apr 2026
Posts: 109,778
Own Kudos:
810,770
 [2]
Given Kudos: 105,853
Products:
GMAT Club Tests Forum Quiz
Expert
Expert reply
Active GMAT Club Expert! Tag them with @ followed by their username for a faster response.
Posts: 109,778
Kudos: 810,770
 [2]
The United States would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline con 06 Apr 2020, 05:59
Kudos
Add Kudos
2
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Bunuel
The United States would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress will raise fuel economy standards to 31.3 miles per gallon for passenger cars and to 24.5 miles per gallon for light trucks.


A. would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress will raise

B. will achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress were to raise

C. will have achieved a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress will raise

D. would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress were to raise

E. would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress were raising
Show more

KAPLAN OFFICIAL EXPLANATION



(D)

Step 1: Read the Original Sentence Carefully, Looking for Errors

The word “if” in the underlined part of this sentence signals a hypothetical situation,so you need the subjunctive mood; you must use “were” and “would.” “Would achieve” iscorrect, but “will raise” is not. Rule out (A).

Step 2: Scan and Group the Answer Choices

(B) and (C) start with “will.” (D) and (E) start with “would.”

Step 3: Eliminate Choices Until Only One Remains

(B) is incorrect because “will achieve” is ordinary future tense, not subjunctive. Similarly, (C) is incorrect because “will have achieved” is also not subjunctive. (D) and (E) both use “would achieve,” which is the proper subjunctive mood. The difference between them comes at the end. (D) uses “if Congress were to raise,” while (E) has “if Congress were raising.” The final phrase in (E) sounds a bit odd and is in fact grammatically incorrect. The proper subjunctive construction calls for the verb that follows “were” to be in the infinitive, not the -ing form. (E) is thus incorrect, and (D), which contains the proper “were”-plus-infinitive construction, is the correct answer. Here it is, read back into the sentence:

The United States would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption, if Congress were to raise fuel economy standards to 31.3 miles per gallon for passenger cars and to 24.5 miles per gallon for light trucks.
General Discussion
User avatar
GMATDr
User avatar
Joined: 22 May 2019
Last visit: 18 Apr 2020
Posts: 25
Own Kudos:
5
 [1]
Given Kudos: 26
Location: India
Concentration: Healthcare, Entrepreneurship
Schools: IMD '21
WE:Brand Management (Pharmaceuticals and Biotech)
Schools: IMD '21
Posts: 25
Kudos: 5
 [1]
The United States would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline con 01 Apr 2020, 06:39
1
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Bunuel
The United States would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress will raise fuel economy standards to 31.3 miles per gallon for passenger cars and to 24.5 miles per gallon for light trucks.


A. would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress will raise

B. will achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress were to raise

C. will have achieved a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress will raise

D. would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress were to raise

E. would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress were raising
Show more

Quoting Aristotle's SC grail for If...then construction:
there can only be three possibilities for the ‘If’ clause:-
If clause in present tense requires will + base verb for then clause
if clause in past tense requires would/could + base verb in then clause
if clause in past perfect tense requires would/could have + base verb in then clause.

All other options flout this rule except D. IMO D should be the answer.
User avatar
daagh
User avatar
Major Poster
Joined: 19 Feb 2007
Last visit: 16 Oct 2020
Posts: 5,262
Own Kudos:
42,465
 [2]
Given Kudos: 422
Status: enjoying
Location: India
WE:Education (Education)
Expert
Expert reply
Posts: 5,262
Kudos: 42,465
 [2]
The United States would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline con 01 Apr 2020, 22:32
1
Kudos
Add Kudos
1
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
The United States would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress will raise fuel economy standards to 31.3 miles per gallon for passenger cars and to 24.5 miles per gallon for light trucks.


A. would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress will raise -- If the congress will raise—is a wrong tense in the conditional 1 sentences

B. will achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress were to raise ---- Will achieve is a wrong tense for the main clause in a conditional 2 sentence.

C. will have achieved a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress will raise --- The future tense ‘will raise’ can never appear in the conditional clause 1.

D. would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress were to raise --- The correct choice as per conditional 2, using a modal ‘would and the base verb achieve’ in the main clause when the conditional clause is in the past tense (were)

E. would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline consumption if Congress were raising ---‘If congress were raising’—denotes an ongoing affair. Wrong
User avatar
VerbalBot
User avatar
Non-Human User
Joined: 01 Oct 2013
Last visit: 04 Jan 2021
Posts: 19,423
Own Kudos:
1,009
Posts: 19,423
Kudos: 1,009
The United States would achieve a 10 percent reduction in gasoline con 14 Dec 2022, 09:19
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Automated notice from GMAT Club VerbalBot:

A member just gave Kudos to this thread, showing it’s still useful. I’ve bumped it to the top so more people can benefit. Feel free to add your own questions or solutions.

This post was generated automatically.
Moderators:
GMATNinja
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
7391 posts
AbhishekP220108
501 posts
bhanu29
358 posts