Canada vs. US Fuel Economy Numbers

Are you adjusting for the difference between the English beer louts gallon of 1824 (Imperial) and the Queen Ann's wine gallon of 1707 (US Customary).

If not, multiply the Canadian figures by 0.833 to convert to US mpg

 

If the U.S. still used the old optimistic (pre-2008) EPA numbers, and expressed them in Imperial gallons, then they would match the current Canadian labels.

Maybe you should reply to them on the same basis they are using. Your gov't says you get 76 mpg, and over 1200 kms per tank.

The U.S. fueleconomy.gov website seems to suggest that the 2010 Prius would have an old-style city rating of 65 mpg, which translates to 78 miles per Imperial gallon. And my best summer commutes beat that by about 10%.

 

Hmmm it's false advertising in that one Country has a different testing routine?

Just because you never come close to the quoting figures doesn't mean they're unrealistic. And just to prove to you that it is possible to get good mpg's out of a Prius I attach a picture (yeah its a little shaky) taken last night showing 30 minutes of consistantly over 75+mpg UK. Looks like it is possible to get 3.7 litre/100kms.



If I can manage this, anyone can.

 

I can't speak to Canadian FE tests as I know zip about them but from Fuel Consumption Guide - Results and the figures you post above, you're using larger Imperial gallons for the Canadian figures and then posting US EPA numbers in smaller US gallons.

Google is a great calculator. A query for 4.6 l per 100 km in miles per imperial gallon results in 61.4089246 miles per Imperial gallon. We don't use Imperial gallons in the US. A query for 4.6 l per 100 km in miles per us gallon results in 51.1336051 miles per US gallon. Obviously, this is still inflated compared to the EPA test result.

Your reply to the stranger should be your Prius' FE values on the same test, otherwise you're comparing apples vs. oranges.

You can read more about the EPA tests at http://priuschat.com/forums/other-c...uth-about-epa-city-highway-mpg-estimates.html. I would be curious if you know of equivalent/similar info on the Canadian tests.

 

I think the simplest solution is to answer in L/100km or km/L. Most people give me a blank look when I do this because they have never considered their own car's consumption in these terms. They buy gas by the L, drive by the km, then quote consumption in MPG (US or UK, who knows) from a commercial they saw.

 

lol fuel consumption is one of those no win questions. You answer honestly, they answer conservatively. You just can't win. It's as others have said, apples v oranges. So long as you're happy with your fuel economy then that's great.

 

We use the same methods the EPA used to use before they corrected them. So our tax dollars buy incorrect information, but you can still compare from vehicle to vehicle.

BTW, I DID -once- get what they say I should. On one tank. On one day. Three years ago. Don't trust it any more than what the govt. says.

Even if the govt. of Canada corrects their testing methods (they don't actually DO the tests, they ask the manufacturers to do it and submit the results) to the current EPA methods, it would still not reflect what we get, as it's colder here than in the US, and that also affects mileage.

 

My car would be rated at ~42mpgUS combined on the Transport Canada test, I'm above that so far after 1.5 years. No tricks, just driving sensibly.

 

Sigh. The problem is that there is no such thing as "AVERAGE" or "NORMAL" driving. Driving conditions vary all over the map. And so does what different people consider "AVERAGE" or "NORMAL". To some people, "AVERAGE" is 10-15mph over the speed limit, they get lower mpg as a result, and often complain. Others have very short trips with long cooloff periods between them, and that kills mpg too. All of this causes mpg to vary by 30% or more.

As a concrete example: my first 8 tanks (5400 miles) were all in the 62-65mpg range (3.8-3.6 L/100km) - that's CALCULATED consumption, not the inflated numbers shown on the HSI. Those tanks were under good conditions: summer, with some long trips thrown in, plus suburban/rural driving around my home. Now that the weather has gotten colder, I've gotten mpg's in the low 40's (!) on highway trips in rain and wind, and my last tank was 50mpg (4.7 L/100km). Same driver, same car, same methods, different conditions. Throwing a different driver with different methods into the mix would probably cause even greater variation.

Fuel economy is a moving target, and anyone who thinks they can quote a single number for "AVERAGE" driving is dreaming. The government test figures are intended solely as a guide when comparing different cars, by testing them under identical controlled conditions. Unfortunately, these comparisons may not hold up under different conditions or with different specific driving styles.

As for "best case", there are people that have gotten even LOWER consumption than 3.7 L/100km. So "best case" is probably an ephemeral concept as well.

Fuel economy discussions can be a morass, probably best to just compare government test numbers and leave it that.

 

Here is a question for our Canadian friends.

When the Canadian MPG test are conducted is the gasoline they
use pure 100% gasoline or is the gasoline a 10% Ethanol
Blend.

I know many people think there is no NOTICABLE difference in either
type, but there is in my opinion.

When I had the chance to use pure gasoline in Nevada I filled up the tank from nearly empty and a few miles later instantly noticed that I was getting at least 5 mpg more than I would have with gas with 10% Ethanol.

So, if the test are conducted using pure gasoline that would have
a direct effect on the results over 10% Ethanol Blend.

Alfon

 

Canada hasn't sold gas in imperial gallons (roughly 5/4 of a US gallon) for maybe 30 years, maybe more, but:

You would have to drag the right to quote mileage in imperial gallons from from the dead bleeding hands of Canadian car salesmen...

I think the Canadian testing protocol is more "optimistic" as well.

 

I don't believe we have ethanol in our gas! Hal

 

Chevron highest octane say's it's ethanol free. All the other grades aren't. Kind of frustrating. Maybe someday I'll try a tank of that, though it's actually for high compression engines.

 

I believe when the U.S. EPA MPG test are conducted the fuel used
is pure gasoline with no Ethanol.

Now, it does seem to go against the grain, as the U.S. is alway
lifting the benefits of Ethanol in our fuel.

If Ethanol is such a wonderful fuel additive to gasoline why is the EPA test NOT mandated to be conducted with the 10% Ethanol blended gasoline????

alfon