The lack of good data is really frustrating. The EPA adjusted the formula for mileage a few years ago which made things slightly better but I never come close to hitting the results in my car.
Observed economy is related to personal circumstances, and in my case living at 700 elevation and traveling down close to 0 on a daily basis hurts my scores (along with tire lifetimes, etc). Another thing that bothers me is that performance cars are rated by the same standards, when the people who buy them undoubtedly drive differently than the people buying Toyota Yarises.
Anecdotal reporting online is a joke. You will find endless car forums with people boasting about how they consistently get 25mpg in their V8 sedan. Gimme a break.
What I'd love to see is some service/app that was able to gather real world data from owners of the same type of car in the same area as me along with general stats about their driving style. This would have to be automated to be accurate.
Anecdotal reporting online is a joke. You will find endless car forums with people boasting about how they consistently get 25mpg in their V8 sedan. Gimme a break.
What I'd love to see is some service/app that was able to gather real world data from owners of the same type of car in the same area as me along with general stats about their driving style. This would have to be automated to be accurate.