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Mileage Figures Go Downhill For 2008
New EPA testing criteria mean retuned fuel economy stickers
As more 2008 autos go on display in dealer showrooms, prospective buyers are experiencing sticker shock: The estimated miles per gallon have dropped by as much as 30 percent from last year's models.
The 2008 model of the popular Toyota Prius hybrid, for example, is now estimated to get 46 miles per gallon overall, compared with the 55 miles indicated on window stickers for the 2007 version, a 16.36 percent decrease. But like other cars, the 2008 Prius is not actually using more fuel than its predecessor. The plunge reflects a reality check from the Environmental Protection Agency, which has revised its mileage calculations to better reflect actual driving conditions.
Under the new EPA testing criteria, the average miles per gallon for 2008 cars and light trucks will fall about 12 percent for city driving and 8 percent on the highway. The numbers for some hybrids will tumble even more - by 20 to 30 percent for city driving and 10 to 20 percent under highway conditions.
Toyota Motor Corp. said it was not surprised by the lower numbers.
"This is a much more realistic test, and the results are much more in line with what our customers have been telling us," said Toyota spokesman Wade Hoyt.
Even though the lower numbers come at a time when gasoline prices are topping $3 a gallon, visitors attending the New England International Auto Show at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center yesterday seemed to take the downward adjustments in stride. John Alexander from Providence said he always viewed mileage stickers "for what they were worth." But "if they're doing it more honestly now," Alexander said of the EPA's testing, "that's definitely going to help."
The change in the way the EPA measures mileage performance marks the agency's first revision of its mileage testing in 22 years. The old tests figured an average driver's top speed at 60 miles per hour and included limited acceleration. They were also conducted without the use of air conditioners and other accessories that reduce fuel efficiency. In addition, the tests failed to calculate the increasing amount of time most drivers spend idling in traffic, sudden acceleration, and the effects of cold weather on a car's performance. Now, the EPA incorporates all of those factors into its testing, including highway speeds as high as 80 miles per hour. And for the first time, the sticker estimates include a figure for overall mileage, not just city and highway.
"The hit is really quite substantial across the board," said Therese Langer, transportation program director for the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, an independent Washington-based group that monitors automotive efficiency.
And while SUVs and pickup trucks appear to take the softest blow under the revised EPA standards, with many dropping only 1 or 2 miles per gallon, their low-efficiency starting point still yields a significant percentage cut for most models.
The EPA has also recalculated mileage estimates for all auto models back to 1985, so that they, too, better show the actual mileage the vehicles achieve. The revamped figures are available online at fueleconomy.gov. For example, when the new standards are applied to 2007 models, the BMW 328ci drops from an overall rating of 24 to 22 miles per gallon. The 2007 Ford Focus wagon is now listed as getting 27 miles per gallon instead of 31, and Honda's 2007 subcompact Fit drops from 34 to 30.
Gloria Bergquist, vice president of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, which worked with the EPA on the new testing standards, said revised numbers won't appear on all vehicles until the 2009 model year. That means that although the majority of 2008 vehicles have the new stickers, some that went on sale early this year may still have old stickers with inflated mileage estimates.
It is easy to tell whether a car has a new sticker: While city mileage estimates are on the left and highway figures are on the right for old and new stickers alike, the new stickers also include the overall mileage estimate at the bottom center.
(The Globe has not used EPA estimates in its testing of cars, instead relying on 800-1,000 miles of varied driving to establish real-world mileage.)
Despite the potential for confusion because of the way the new system is being phased in, Rik Paul, automotive editor for Consumer Reports, said that "overall, it's a plus for consumers." Paul said the new EPA estimates are much closer to reality, although city figures - particularly among hybrids - are still higher than what Consumer Reports testing has shown.
But the EPA estimates have never taken into account personal driving styles, which can affect mileage. To save fuel, the agency recommends avoiding aggressive driving - including speeding, rapid acceleration, and hard braking. It also recommends removing extra weight from a vehicle - just 100 pounds can translate into a 2 percent drop in fuel efficiency.
Other tips for improving mileage include keeping a car tuned, checking tire pressure regularly, and following a program of recommended oil changes.
Royal Ford can be reached at ford@globe.com.
© 2007 The Boston Globe
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13 Comments so far
Show AllI drive an 84 toyota corolla. I could afford a newer car but I like this one - it gets between 33 and 35 mpg in town and between 37 and 39 on the hiway (using 5th gear - it used to get 40mpg but it's starting to show its age). I mention this because it is absurd that US car makers are whining about CAFE standards. They've known how to make reasonably fuel efficient cars for at least 25 or 30 years. I'm surprised that Toyota's Prius doesn't get better milage. Maybe the newest fuel crunch will concentrate their minds and they'll produce another precedent breaker like they did 25 or 30 years ago. Have they been just coasting since?
When I have to rent a car or use a work-pool car, I always drive it carefully to optimize the fuel economy, then compare it to the EPA figures. I nearly always get the EPA's old-figure "highway" fuel economy - the one most people claim is unrealistically high. For example I recently got 29 mpg from a big chevy impala sport on a recent trip over a mix of suburban/rural roads.
It's all how you drive the car. There has been a trend toward aggressive, fuel-wasting driving styles over the past couple decades.
1. Make believe there is an egg between your right foot and the pedal.
2. Accelerate gently but not too gently - if you use a car with a fuel economy gauge, you will find the optimum acceleration rate.
3. Coast in neutral* down gentle hills and up to traffic lights and practice coasting so no braking is needed when appraoching a red traffic light. Brakes just turn hard-earned kinetic energy into wasted heat while a car coasting in neutral at 30-40 mph with the engine idling is getting at least 100 mpg.
4. Anticipate all other traffic stops or slow-downs.
5. On hilly or rolling terrain, maintain as steady a throttle as possible - don't try to maintain speed going uphill - allow the speed to bleed off uphill and allow gravity to accelerate the car downhill.
6. Only use cruise control on flat or gentle terrain, otherwise use technique #4 above.
7. A car gets infinite fuel economy with the engine off, so on long down grades that aren't so steep as to need engine braking - coast with the engine off. On Hwy 441 in Tennessee, I used to coast engine-off from Newfound Gap in the Smokies all the way into Gatlinburg - a distance of more than 30 miles.
*This doesn't work with all cars - in a late model Ford Expedetion at work, the computer control opens the throttle to match the car's speed for some inexplicable, fuel wasting, reason.
this is why I am moving to electric. I can get all the local trips I have to make on full electric. I am also going solar cell to charge it. I have had it with the year after year same story maybe next year, wait till the Gov. changes. I will keep my gas powered van for longer trips that I will cut down to a few times a month. We are fighting wars over this shit wake up people stop playing their game.
They're using a new testing method starting in 2008 (which is more actually more accurate/realistic, go figure).
For instance, the 2007 and 2008 Scion TC's have the exact same engine and weight, give or take a few pounds, but under the new EPA testing methedology, the 2008 gets 21/29 compared with the 2007 which gets 22/31.
And it's like that accross the board for all cars since they're all tested under the same method. Decreases of like 5-10%.
California Motor Vehicle Code:
"21710. The driver of a motor vehicle when traveling on down grade upon any highway shall not coast with the gears of such vehicle in neutral." This can be a real safety issue whith 2-3,000 0r 88,000 pounds of hardwhere rolling down a smooth slope at 15 to 50 MPH.
Few of us have water sprayers to cool our breaks.
All of us can control our "accelarater" foot.
Could we also stop washing dishes under runing hot water?
I read an article in MotherJones about guys like PJD who obsess over gas mileage to the point of tailgating behind semis to take advantage of the pull of the air suction behind them. That stuff is just weird.
The new EPA mileage ratings reflect modern driving reality, and although I appreciate the truth-in-advertising nature of the new ratings, the downward movement of the numbers hurts the popular, efficient Japanese models harder than the gas-guzzling American SUVs. Therefore, it's easy to see how this new-found honesty was allowed to come about.
I can proudly report my personal MPG has gone way up this year. I've moved from a suburban location to a city where I don't have to drive my car most of the time and can ride the bus.
Why not lower the maximum speed limit? It worked in the seventies.
I'm filling up less than twice a month. I've been driving my Prius for seven years as of this Nov. Haven't figured what I may have saved in fuel over the years, but it's safe to say it's been a lot. My average mpg is 52. And yes, there is something to"technique" with the pedal, not to mention the sometimes option of leaving it parked!
Fuel economy figures are still inflated. Surveying Prius owners we know produces average gas economy of 41.5 mpg.
Overall private vehicle economy (including SUVs, pickups, etc) is actually slightly less than that of the Model-T Ford - 17 mpg.
American's love of the personal auto is going to die a slow and very painful death as the reality of skyrocketing gas prices and stagnant/declining wages work their magic through the US economy.
Before long the savvy commuters will be echoing their skeptical ancestors, crying "get a horse!". Dubyuh's loyal 24% will shout back their own battle cry- "Stay The Course!".
Whether or not realism helps the Detroit gas hogs, there's nothing wrong with using realistic figures when measuring gas mileage. There's enough of using half-truths already.
I agree with chilijan, let's lower the speed limit. I have no idea why this actual useful measure gets no discussion at all.
My little Honda Civic Hybrid, in just over 6,000 miles, some long highway trips (maybe 2400 miles) and the rest local, is averaging right at 46 mpg, just as (I think) shown by the revised EPA figures--just the same as the Prius. It amazes me that Detroit whines about not being able to meet even pitifully small increases in fleet gas mileage, and the flim-flams they apparently intend to use (since apparently ethanol isn't going to count as gas) instead of technology that is well-proven and years old (hybrids).
militantliberal,
I had the same experience, when I lived in the sprawl of Washington DC suburban area I must have averaged 25,000 miles of driving a year. In Pittsburgh, my mileage went down to less than 5000 miles - all of it from frequent out of town outings and travel since walking and the bus was suitable for 95% of commuting and errands. Those expensive hybrids would need to get 225 mpg to get the same fuel savings - and this isn't counting the problem with the efficiency-improvements-only-causing-more usage effect. I know Prius owners who have openly admitted to this happening.
We don't need these expensibe hybrids, we need a return to car-free urban development and small, cheap, 1 to 1.5L cars or batttery-electrics (not $90,000 Teslas) when a car must be used.
Twoblueday, if you ever see a early 80's Honda Civic still on the road, wouldn't call yout late model Civic "little". The 1.5L Civic coupe in the 1980's was rated at 51 mpg and probably cost about $7,000 new in todays dollars.