With the summer driving season just around the corner and prices at the pump already inching up, its a good time to take a closer look at one of the biggest things people consider about a car, MPG. Once an afterthought, MPG is now an important factor in car buying, as evidenced by all the car ads on tv that proudly announce the vehicle’s thirst for gas. To get a feel for what kind of MPGs are common, here’s a list of the top selling cars and their MPG ratings:
| Top Selling cars in the US (Based on Feb. 2010 sales) | |||
| Rank | Vehicle | Mileage split | 50/50 Hwy & City |
| 1 | Ford F-150 | 19 mpg Hwy/14 mpg City | 16 |
| 2 | Honda Accord | 31 mpg Hwy/22 mpg City | 26 |
| 3 | Chevy Silverado | 20 mpg Hwy/15 mpg City | 17 |
| 4 | Toyota Corolla / Matrix | 35 mpg Hwy/26 mpg City | 30 |
| 5 | Toyota Camry / Solara | 33 mpg Hwy/22 mpg City | 27 |
| 6 | Honda Civic | 31 mpg Hwy/24 mpg City | 27 |
| 7 | Ford Fusion | 31 mpg Hwy/22 mpg City | 27 |
| 8 | Nissan Altima | 32 mpg Hwy/23 mpg City | 27 |
| 9 | Ford Escape | 28 mpg Hwy/22 mpg City | 25 |
| 10 | Chevy Malibu | 30 mpg Hwy/22 mpg City | 26 |
| 11 | Chevrolet Cobalt | 35 mpg Hwy/25 mpg City | 30 |
| 12 | Ford Focus | 35 mpg Hwy/24 mpg City | 30 |
| 13 | Honda CR-V | 28 mpg Hwy/21 mpg City | 24 |
| 14 | Chevy Impala | 29 mpg Hwy/18 mpg City | 23 |
| 15 | Nissan Sentra | 31 mpg Hwy/24 mpg City | 28 |
Whether your MPG is important to you to save the environment, reduce fuel expenditure or cut your dependence on foreign oil, here is some analysis on MPG you might want to consider.
| Annual fuel expenditure by MPG | |||
| Assumptions | |||
| Miles driven: | 15000 | ||
| Fuel Cost : | $3 | ||
| MPG | Annual Fuel Cost | Incremental Diff. | Diff. from mean |
| 10 | 4500 | -1500 | 2250 |
| 15 | 3000 | -750 | 750 |
| *20 | 2250 | -450 | 0 |
| 25 | 1800 | -300 | -450 |
| 30 | 1500 | -214 | -750 |
| 35 | 1286 | -161 | -964.29 |
| 40 | 1125 | -125 | -1125 |
| 45 | 1000 | -182 | -1250 |
| 55 | 818 | -68 | -1431.82 |
| 60 | 750 | -1500 | |
*The DOT estimate for avg. mpg for current vehicles on the road is 19.6mpg
The main thing to note from this table is the rate of diminishing returns in annual fuel savings as MPG goes up. For example, switching from a 15 mpg Ford 150 to a 20 mpg Chevy Tahoe saves you $750 in fuel, but switching from a 25 mpg Ford Escape to a 30 mpg Toyota Corolla only saves you $300 a year in fuel. The takeaway here is that the higher up the mpg ladder you go, the less money and fuel you save, so not all mpg gains are equal. If your vehicle gets less than 20 mpg, you have more to gain by improving your mpg than someone with an mpg higher than 30. Here are some ways to improve your mpg, regardless of what you get now, but particularly important if you’re on the low end of the mpg spectrum.
Ways to improve MPG (along with maximum improvements)
Habitual Improvements:
- Drive sensibly – 30%
- Remove excess weight from car- 2%
- Turn off ignition if idling for more than 1 min
- Park with the front end facing out
- Limit A/C use
- Wash & wax regularily for improved aerodynamics
Vehicle Improvements:
- Replace clogged air filter – 10%
- Proper air pressure – 6%
- Replace worn spark plugs – 5%
- Fuel additives to clean injector
I was able to achieve 40 mpg on my 2006 Toyota Corolla, here’s proof. Primarily highway driven at or near the speed limit.
