Not getting Estimated MPG

[BDC]

"Driving styles" keep coming up over and over again in this thread. Yet even if people are doing pure city driving, why are they not even reaching the city estimate? The OP is getting 25.0 mpg average in primarily highway driving in a car that is rated at 27mpg for pure city driving. You could assume that they're doing 120 mph in their highway driving, or that they spend most of their time on a drag strip. But a much more realistic guess is since most of the new Imprezas on Fuelly are not meeting the EPA estimates, that maybe the estimates are bogus.

"The EPA figures are only meaningful if your daily commute happens to exactly match the EPA test cycle." That is a misleading statement. The estimates are there as a realistic representation of what most drivers will experience. When the statistics show that certain vehicles don't reach the estimates for a large percentage of drivers, that means the estimates are wrong.

This is becoming all too common with certain vehicles and certain brands. It is out of the realm of "your mileage may vary." The "driving styles" argument is no more credible than Ford Fusion Hybrid MPG ratings when you are talking about conglomerated statistics of dozens or hundreds of cars and drivers.

[dtwjr]

BDC, to the point indeed.

[alvaro84]

"The EPA figures are only meaningful if your daily commute happens to exactly match the EPA test cycle."

Well, only if you drive in 25°C, no wind, dry roads, no hills(?), with the same rate of acceleration, correct tire pressure and whatnot. Of course with well applied techniques it's possible (not even too hard) to beat official FE figures, but if it's getting harder for newer models then it is a cause for concern.

[MMUK]

I easily beat the NEDC estimates on my daily commute. And the NEDC figures are higher than the EPA.

The reason is that I have a particularly good commute for MPG purposes.

Which is the point I was trying to make in my post above.

The same applies here:

"Yet even if people are doing pure city driving, why are they not even reaching the city estimate?" ... but does their city drive match the EPA city drive? Probably not. They are bound to have either more or fewer stops, a longer or shorter distance. Just because they are doing 'city' driving' it does not mean that they will get the same mpg as on the EPA city driving cycle.

[alvaro84]

Too short distances seriously kill fuel economy. I forgot to mention, but yes, sometimes this is the main reason behind bad FE.

[MacBriggs]

Coast more often, and slow down. The less air resistance, the better your economy. 50 is a very efficient speed in a car, more like 40 in a truck.

[BoggsMan]

It has been my experience that the Toyota Prius is right on the EPA sticker estimate. I now have my 2nd with the same results. I find it interesting that the new Ford C-Max is trending far below the sticker estimate of 47/47. It looks more like the high 30's. Now, that would really be a bummer.

[berend]

I would say it's driving style. My Toyota Prius C gives immediate feedback, and yes, if I ease on the accelerator (but accelerate on fuel, not EV), it's not hard to beat the ratings. What is hard is to do it continually, i.e. it requires self-control and planning (leave 3 minutes early, so you don't feel the pressure to hit the pedals).

[cvtkid]

I have been mpg-testing my 12 Imp cvt for a year, now. It has become very clear that the Imp is like a barn door w/regard to mpg. Keep it slow, and you'll get amazing mpg. Drive fast (+10 mph over speed limit) and you will, literally, pay the price. I commute 40 miles, 10 miles of interstate, 5 miles city, the rest 55 mph two-lane with lots of stops. Driving 5 mph below the limit got me a whole tank at 37 mpg! Driving with traffic at +10 mph gets me 28 mpg.

[campisi]

Yes, to driving sytle and driving conditions. All city driving isn't the same. If you fire up a cold engine and drive it 2 miles, shut it down and then fire it up again 4 hours later and drive 5 miles, well, your MPG will SUCK even on the most efficient of vehicles.

Assuming a vehicle is mechanically sound there can be a massive difference due to driving 'style'. Check my 2011 Subaru Forester's MPG vs other 2011 Forester's MPG on this site. It will be a real eye-opener. If you drive 'smart' EPA ratings can be beaten and beaten by a lot. My car returns 27% OVER the EPA rating for the life of the car.