Matching Up Fuel Economy To The Real World
Today Ford announced what most of the motoring world already knew – the claimed fuel economy on several of its gasoline, hybrid and plug-in hybrid cars are pretty tough to reach in the real world. In a deal with the EPA, Ford restates the mpg on the following vehicles:
- Ford Fiesta
- Ford Fusion
- Ford Fusion Hybrid
- Ford Fusion Energi
- Ford C-Max Hybrid
- Ford C-Max Energi
- Lincoln MKZ Hybrid
The MKZ Hybrid took the biggest hit of seven mpg, dropping it to 31 mpg combined from its previous 38. Ford self-reported this correction to the EPA, saying they used an incorrect factor when calculating fuel economy based on the dynamometer testing that is part of what is reported to figure out the fuel economy numbers. Ford been claiming the higher numbers for at least the last two years and plans to send checks to customers who have bought the vehicles paying for the difference in the window sticker and newly calculated fuel economy numbers. Ford estimated that it had about 200,000 of the affected cars on the road.
This is the second time Ford restated mpg and dropped its fuel economy numbers on some of the vehicles. Last August it dropped the C-Max Hybrid fuel economy numbers by seven mpg after consumer complaints.
Among other manufacturers, Hyundai/Kia also did a customer mea culpa when it was revealed during EPA investigations that several of its vehicles had overstated their fuel economy by one mpg or more. That company also sent checks to those who had purchased the vehicle and the general consensus was that the company suffered little damage in the marketplace. It remains to be seen how this will impact Ford, which has been placing a great emphasis on its pursuit of higher fuel economy for vehicles across the board. The company has led the way in the pickup market this year with the introduction of the 2015 aluminum-intensive F-150 pickup.
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