[T3] MPG

[Know One]

In any discussion of MPG, one has to bear in mind that drivers vary considerably and they have a significant affect on MPG.

Over on one of the Prius email lists, hypermilers can consistently get over 100 MPG from the same exact car that the owner can only occasionally get over 50 MPG. It isn't the car, it's how the car is driven. Because the car has a built-in MPG calculator, drivers tend to be more conscious of their MPG than others, and because they generally achieve high (40-50) MPGs, any change (temperature, wet roads, etc.) tends to get noticed more easily than in cars that are in the 20MPG range and don't have a gage.

Comparing one car with it's driver with another car and another car is only interesting, but it isn't data that is numerically comparable. If your car with you driving suddenly gets different mileage, then it is interesting, because something happened to cause that change, and usually something that needs to be fixed.

Jeff '67 Sqbk