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Is My Inner Danica Patrick Blowing My Gas Mileage?
Jun 27 2008 by Lori Hindman
6/27/08
EPA Website Features Real People’s Fuel Consumption
I am not a math person, but I can tell that the EPA mileage estimates have little relationship to my actual fuel consumption. Maybe it’s just me and my lack of algebraic competence, but as far as I can tell based on my rudimentary arithmetic skills, the numbers just don’t add up.
It used to be that manufacturers put their cars on a little car treadmill and ran it for the equivalent of so many miles, then checked the gas gauge to get an estimate they would provide to the EPA. Recently, the EPA added some new measures to get a more accurate estimate of gas mileage. While they still use the treadmill device (unlike myself), instead of using the gas gauge to determine how much fuel has been burned, a hose is attached to the exhaust pipe and carbon is measured for a much more accurate consumption figure. New for the 2008 model year, there are tests to check mileage with the air conditioning running during hot weather, cold weather starts and more-aggressive, higher-speed driving. Sounds all scientific and stuff, right? In most cases, the new estimates are a bit lower (and more accurate) than the old ones, but they’re still way off from my real-world gas consumption. With gas prices quickly approaching $5 a gallon here in Los Angeles, I’m not willing to let it slide.
Here’s my problem (you knew I had one, right?): All this testing is done with a professional driver in a car going nowhere. He looks at a little screen and reaches the designated speeds for designated periods and never goes up a hill or guns the engine to merge onto the freeway. He doesn’t have to slam the brakes and then rev back up to highway speeds because some moron just jumped into his lane. He never has to load a week’s worth of groceries, four kids and their lead-filled backpacks into his car. He only uses the A/C in one of his five tests. I use my A/C nine months of the year, and I’m not driving on a treadmill.
My gas mileage is not hitting the EPA estimates. The 2008 Honda Odyssey, for example, is rated to get 17 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway with a combined rating of 20 mpg. I got less than 13 mpg during my two-week testing period. It’s the same story with the 2008 Honda CR-V; it’s rated to get 20/26 mpg, but I got 16.
Well, the EPA probably saw me coming a mile away; there’s a feature on its website where you can look up mileage numbers from real folks who drive the same car you do and have submitted their own data. Just look up the car you drive and click on your specific engine/transmission combination and there it is, below the EPA estimates. Maybe it’s just my inner Danica Patrick that blows the EPA mileage estimates off the road; 2008 Odyssey drivers are reporting an average of 19.7 mpg combined. The CR-V real-world average is at 23.6.
So, what do we do with all this information? I take it with the proverbial grain of salt and use both sets of figures to compare one car with another, rather than forecast my future spending. I mean, EPA figures are meant to be rough estimates, not gospel. Keep in mind that it’s not the EPA doing the testing, too; it’s just reporting the automakers’ data, which is obtained using EPA standards. The EPA does, however, verify about 10 percent to 15 percent of those results with tests in its own lab. Hmm … just 15 percent? Do I smell a conspiracy? Let’s not go there. That’s a long road, and gas is freakin’ expensive.
User Comments
I think it’s you - and I think it’s also car reviewers in general. I’ve always gotten EPA numbers or better on my cars, and I don’t drive slowly - but I don’t ever leave my car idling unnecessarily, I anticipate stops, run the higher suggested tire pressure, try to get into a high gear as soon as possible and so on. The driver makes a huge difference in what mileage you get. Example: ‘95 VW Passat GLX, EPA 19/25, worst tank ever was 20MPG, best ever 29MPG, typically 26MPG. Those are the old EPA numbers, too. But I live in a mild climate, so I don’t do that many cold starts and only use the air two or three months out of the year.
This might not be something to increase your mileage but it will certainly put some money back in your pocket if you have a business. IRS just increased the mileage deduction rate from 50.5 to 58.5 cents for every mile. There is an exciting business tool that captures your mileage automatically (hands free) and sends this information through wireless networks to http://www.MileageLogger.com . I think is a great tool to get your money back when is time to do your taxes.