Unsurprisingly, according to an AAA Automotive Engineering-conducted two-phase study, knowledge that you can’t quite reach manufacturer claimed figures is refreshed.
A total of 37,000 records were submitted by participants which represents “over 8,400 vehicle year/make/model combinations” that were looked at.
The first phase of the study found, among other facts you can see for yourself in the infographic posted below, that “8 out of 10 drivers (81.8 percent) report higher fuel than the EPA ratings for their vehicle.”
At the same time, 16 percent report lower numbers, while only 2.2 percent report matching the EPA claims.
In the second part of the study, AAA tested a full-sized pickup, a large sedan and a medium sedan (all 2014 MY) on its own to see what results it achieved. The vehicles weren’t tested in real driving situations, though, and they were simply strapped to dynos and measured.
The study “concludes that an individual’s driving behaviors, including speed, rate of acceleration and braking, along with vehicle condition, driving environment and terrain are likely to be responsible for deviations from EPA ratings.”
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