Fuel consumption labels

You are now able to get much more accurate information about the fuel consumption of new cars, 4WDs and SUVs sold in Australia under the recently updated Australian Design Rule ADR 81/02.

In addition to the overall, or, to use the official term, the Combined fuel consumption average shown on the label now attached to the windscreen of all new cars, specific averages for highway (called Extra-Urban) and city (called Urban) fuel consumption has to be displayed on the label, along with the Combined carbon dioxide emissions figure.

New models introduced after October 1 2008 carry the updated label. The car makers were given another six months to organise the production of updated labels for existing models, which must carry it from April 1, 2009.

As with the current regulations, the new ADR81/02 applies to all new vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes gross vehicle mass, including 4WDs and light commercials.

The fuel consumption label was introduced in 2004 to promote consumer demand for more environmentally friendly vehicles.

Its importance has further increased in the past 18 months as spiralling petrol prices have caused many new car buyers to take a closer look at how consumption rates of different models compare.

Australia adopted the European emissions standard/fuel consumption UN ECE Type 1 test, in 2003.

It consists of five simulated driving cycles over a total distance of 11.023 kilometres. Its emissions and fuel consumption results are those shown on the label.

The test is done in laboratories, not on the road. The car makers themselves conduct the test and supply the figures to the relevant federal departments.

The urban (city) cycle takes 195 seconds. It's performed four times. It comprises 36.9 per cent of the total distance; the extra urban (highway) cycle, which takes 400 seconds, is performed once. It comprises 63.1 per cent of the distance.

The single fuel consumption figure, displayed on the label as the
Combined figure, is determined by applying these distance percentages to the actual urban and extra urban consumption numbers, and adding the two for a final average.

The fact that 63.1 per cent of the average is derived from the highway part of the test explains why the Combined figure on the fuel consumption label bears little relationship to how much fuel your car will use in the city.

If you live in a capital city and do a lot of driving in commuter traffic, your car's actual fuel consumption will always be higher than the Combined average on the label - significantly so in the case of big, heavy cars and 4WDs with large capacity petrol engines.

The Land Rover Discovery 4.0V6, for example, has a Combined average consumption of 15.2L/100km. However its Urban consumption is 21.0L/100km - a 38 per cent difference.

Toyota's 2.4 litre four cylinder/five speed automatic Camry has a combined average of 9.9L/100km. However its Urban average - which Toyota does not publicise, because it does not have to - is 13.8L/100km. That's a 39 per cent discrepancy.

And the fact that the Toyota Aurion also achieves a Combined average of 9.9L/100km confirms the unreliability of the single figure reporting system.

The Aurion is a Camry with a 3.5 litre V6 that produces 200kW of power. It's matched with a six speed automatic.

The Combined average suggests that the Aurion's two extra cylinders, 1.1 litres additional capacity, and a power increase of 83 kW - 70 per cent - produces no increase in fuel consumption.

If you think this sounds too good to be true, you're probably right.

So the introduction of three averages - Combined, Urban and Extra-urban - on the label is welcome, because it will provide new car buyers, especially those who live and drive in the city, with much more accurate consumption figures.
 
In our testing experience, the Urban average is certainly achievable in town, and in some cases it's actually higher than we have recorded. The Extra-urban, or highway, average, is still a bit optimistic on big cars and 4WDs, but again it is usually achievable as long as you drive with a smooth touch.

The British government goes much further in its efforts to provide car buyers with comprehensive, accurate information.

Every car dealership must prominently display a poster, or an electronic screen, listing the cars in the showroom, quoting detailed fuel consumption and CO2 emission numbers for each.

All promotional material, including brochures and advertisements, for a new car must also carry city, highway and combined average figures.

Marketers who would prefer not to tell the world how thirsty their cars are have no recourse to the good old ‘bury the fuel numbers at the bottom of an advertisement in fine print' trick either. The UK regulations state that "fuel consumption and CO2 information should not be in a smaller font size than other text giving information on the vehicle e.g. performance, price."

In Australia, there is still no requirement for car makers or dealers to provide the Combined, Urban or Extra Urban fuel consumption figures, or CO2 emissions, in their advertising or point of sale material.

However the three fuel averages and a single Combined CO2 emissions figure will be provided for each new and existing model on the Green Vehicle Guide website.

"The Green Vehicle Guide website has been recently upgraded to provide the capacity to display urban and extra-urban fuel consumption and CO2 values (in addition to the combined value)," a spokesperson from the Department of Infrastructure and Transport told mynrma.com.au.

"We expect that the urban and extra urban values will begin to appear on the GVG in the coming months in line with new model releases, as manufacturers are increasingly likely to comply with ADR81/02 as 1 October approaches."

"Once a vehicle is certified to ADR81/02, the GVG entry for that model will display combined, urban and extra-urban values and the new label will be displayed on the vehicle," the spokesperson said.

Article by Bill McKinnon, July 2008.