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7th
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Every week, your writer spends about 2,000 kilometres driving one of the hottest and most important new cars on the road today. And I measure fuel consumption at each and every fill-up by hand.
I also complete a day of filming, complete with plenty of full-throttle camera drive-bys, in each car I test.
Justin Pritchard isn't a hypermiler - but he is fairly consistent in his inefficient driving.
Weekly, that driving takes me home from the speedy highways of central Ontario to the Northernmost point of Highway 69 in Sudbury, and then back - after a week of in-town travelling.
In the past months, I've driven numerous fuel-efficient cars and made some interesting observations comparing their real-world overall average mileage to one another.
Maybe your drive is the same as mine. Probably not. For the sake of casual comparison, here's what I've logged lately. Remember that your numbers will vary.
Hyundai Sonata BlueDrive: 6.2L/100km
Quite impressed, even for a hybrid. Remember: this is a big, comfortable sedan. My extended summer test consisted of about 2,400 kilometres of highway driving at high speed and minimal attempts to drive economically.
Other Hybrids? I achieved 5.3L/100km overall in a 2010 Toyota Prius, and 5.7L/100km in a 2010 Honda Insight.
Mazda3 SKYACTIV with 6-speed manual: 7.3L/100km
I was having so much fun with the slick gearbox and tidy handling that I didn't remember to drive gently. I'd bet I could get the Mazda3 SKYACTIV to tie a Volkswagen Jetta TDI for real-life mileage if I had. This tester wore snow tires and only had a few thousand kilometres on its odometer, which means there's even more room for improvement.
Volkswagen Jetta TDI with DSG: 6.9L/100km
Mid-spring test. The TDI and I did 180 kilometres before the tank even came off of empty. And that tank emptied very slowly. At the end of a highway-intensive test-drive, I was impressed with the figure I recorded, especially given the available performance.
I thought this would be the best fuel economy I'd record all year - and it almost was. For comparison, I achieved this same figure in a smart fortwo during a mid-winter test drive. And in a Honda CR-Z on a late-summer test drive.
Chevrolet Cruze Eco: 6.0L/100km
This is the most impressed I've been with overall fuel economy lately. And the Cruze Eco isn't even diesel or a hybrid. Filling up after a lengthy highway drive at a good clip, I thought the gas pump was broken when it clicked off earlier than expected. Cruze Eco did 4.6L/100km at highway speeds above the posted limit.
That's impressive. This is the gas mileage car for folks not interested in hybrid battery packs or diesel.
Scion iQ: 7.2L/100km
This little CVT-equipped, 1.3L microcar put away a test average of 7.2L/100km. That's not terrible - though given the size and power at play, I'd expected a bit better. Engine break-in wasn't complete here, and snow tires were mounted, so there's some room for improvement. Same ballpark as a Hyundai Accent.
I also complete a day of filming, complete with plenty of full-throttle camera drive-bys, in each car I test.
Justin Pritchard isn't a hypermiler - but he is fairly consistent in his inefficient driving.
Weekly, that driving takes me home from the speedy highways of central Ontario to the Northernmost point of Highway 69 in Sudbury, and then back - after a week of in-town travelling.
In the past months, I've driven numerous fuel-efficient cars and made some interesting observations comparing their real-world overall average mileage to one another.
Maybe your drive is the same as mine. Probably not. For the sake of casual comparison, here's what I've logged lately. Remember that your numbers will vary.
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| Photo: Hyundai |
Hyundai Sonata BlueDrive: 6.2L/100km
Quite impressed, even for a hybrid. Remember: this is a big, comfortable sedan. My extended summer test consisted of about 2,400 kilometres of highway driving at high speed and minimal attempts to drive economically.
Other Hybrids? I achieved 5.3L/100km overall in a 2010 Toyota Prius, and 5.7L/100km in a 2010 Honda Insight.
Mazda3 SKYACTIV with 6-speed manual: 7.3L/100km
I was having so much fun with the slick gearbox and tidy handling that I didn't remember to drive gently. I'd bet I could get the Mazda3 SKYACTIV to tie a Volkswagen Jetta TDI for real-life mileage if I had. This tester wore snow tires and only had a few thousand kilometres on its odometer, which means there's even more room for improvement.
Volkswagen Jetta TDI with DSG: 6.9L/100km
Mid-spring test. The TDI and I did 180 kilometres before the tank even came off of empty. And that tank emptied very slowly. At the end of a highway-intensive test-drive, I was impressed with the figure I recorded, especially given the available performance.
I thought this would be the best fuel economy I'd record all year - and it almost was. For comparison, I achieved this same figure in a smart fortwo during a mid-winter test drive. And in a Honda CR-Z on a late-summer test drive.
Chevrolet Cruze Eco: 6.0L/100km
This is the most impressed I've been with overall fuel economy lately. And the Cruze Eco isn't even diesel or a hybrid. Filling up after a lengthy highway drive at a good clip, I thought the gas pump was broken when it clicked off earlier than expected. Cruze Eco did 4.6L/100km at highway speeds above the posted limit.
That's impressive. This is the gas mileage car for folks not interested in hybrid battery packs or diesel.
Scion iQ: 7.2L/100km
This little CVT-equipped, 1.3L microcar put away a test average of 7.2L/100km. That's not terrible - though given the size and power at play, I'd expected a bit better. Engine break-in wasn't complete here, and snow tires were mounted, so there's some room for improvement. Same ballpark as a Hyundai Accent.