Kestas
Staff member
Originally Posted By: "loopholes"
One might think the government would use a single set of ratings for both CAFE and vehicle window stickers. But the well-known EPA mileage ratings are not used to calculate CAFE, and the difference can be significant. For example, a vehicle that scores an EPA combined rating of 29 miles per gallon actually contributes 39 MPG to its manufacturer's CAFE average. There are 29 car models and 36 truck models that already achieve the new standard, and about a third of the cars and half of the trucks are produced by a domestic automaker.
Edmunds.com Director of Vehicle Testing Dan Edmunds explained, "CAFE miles per gallon ratings and EPA window sticker MPG ratings were originally generated simultaneously through government lab testing. Window sticker ratings have been downrated twice in the last 25 years to make them more realistic for consumers, while CAFE mpg methods remained the same. So, with each EPA revision, EPA window sticker MPG and CAFE MPG drifted further apart."
If I read between the lines correctly, I remember that CAFE highway mileage was measured at 55 mph, and city cycle mileage was measured using a specific regimen of stop and go driving conditions. This probably hasn't changed in over three decades.
The latest round of EPA highway mileage numbers was lowered a few years ago to reflect that most highway driving is now done in urban settings where people often hit the brakes to trim their speed for congested conditions.
One might think the government would use a single set of ratings for both CAFE and vehicle window stickers. But the well-known EPA mileage ratings are not used to calculate CAFE, and the difference can be significant. For example, a vehicle that scores an EPA combined rating of 29 miles per gallon actually contributes 39 MPG to its manufacturer's CAFE average. There are 29 car models and 36 truck models that already achieve the new standard, and about a third of the cars and half of the trucks are produced by a domestic automaker.
Edmunds.com Director of Vehicle Testing Dan Edmunds explained, "CAFE miles per gallon ratings and EPA window sticker MPG ratings were originally generated simultaneously through government lab testing. Window sticker ratings have been downrated twice in the last 25 years to make them more realistic for consumers, while CAFE mpg methods remained the same. So, with each EPA revision, EPA window sticker MPG and CAFE MPG drifted further apart."
If I read between the lines correctly, I remember that CAFE highway mileage was measured at 55 mph, and city cycle mileage was measured using a specific regimen of stop and go driving conditions. This probably hasn't changed in over three decades.
The latest round of EPA highway mileage numbers was lowered a few years ago to reflect that most highway driving is now done in urban settings where people often hit the brakes to trim their speed for congested conditions.
