Are Hyundai MPG displays accurate?

I took a look at Fuelly - Track and Compare your MPG and it's showing the users there getting right about 30 mpg.

{edit} - hmm that link wasn't there when I hit reply. But it's fuelly.com

 

Most of those displays are optimistic, and then they can be measuring different data sets. I've had trips in the Camry that were over 40mpg, and can keep the instant MPG in the 50's for stretches. A reset, whether by user or a quit stop with engine off, of the display while everything is warmed up can report better than typical numbers.

 

The Camry can display instant, trip, tank, and lifetime until reset fuel economy. The trip resets when the car is shut down, and the tank on a fill up. The Elantra was likely warmed up during the trip to the station, so seeing high numbers doing ideal highway cruising on a reset gauge wouldn't be out of line. Figure the gauge is 5% to 10% optimistic(the Camry's is 6%).

 

My 2016 Camry has a 35mpg highway rating. Cruising at those speeds, the reported tank average can be over 38mpg. The instant MPG bar tops out at 60mpg.

The 2019 Elantra is 40mpg highway. Without a cold start penalty, the reported value can be that high from an optimistic gauge. Want to know what it actually got, you have to calculate a tank, or calibrate a scanguage for the specific car.

 

Just one real-world example of the difference between displayed MPG and actual: Hyundai Ioniq SEL Hybrid display at 61.8, and calculated from fill-up 60.3.

 

That's more accurate than most Prius mpg display I have seen. Prius (both Gen3 and PRIME) display is almost always 5-8% more optimistic than calculated by full-tank method.

 

My Gen 3 Prius was typically about 5% optimistic, but the Gen 2 I had was closer, more like 2%. Both were pretty consistent however, so while the numbers weren't exactly right, consumption trends by driving habits and routes were.

 

I know this is an old thread. But are modern gassers really that fuel efficient? My last gasser I drove was our old 2005 Sienna AWD which I got rid of last year. I was never able to get anything better than 24 mpg on hwy, typically less than 20 mpg in town. Of course it was V6, AWD and a minivan. For an economy 4 cylinder compact gasser, I have to go back to '98 Civic sedan. I was not that fuel efficiency conscience back then, and didn't keep any record, but I don't think it got much better than ~30 mpg? Even my first hybrid 08 HCH got lifetime 43.1 mpg. We currently have three cars all hybrid in our household, but if new gasser can get 40-50 mpg, then I must be doing something wrong with my selection of cars.

 

I had to look it up myself. Here is the list of BEST 10 most fuel efficient 2019 non-hybrid, non-EV gasser by EPA rating. source: 10 Most Fuel-Efficient Non-Hybrid/Electric Cars For 2019

1. Mitsubishi Mirage 36 City / 43 Highway / 39 Combined
2. Chevrolet Cruze Diesel Sedan 31 City / 48 Highway / 37 Combined
3. Toyota Corolla Hatchback (Tie) 32 City / 42 Highway / 36 Combined
3. Honda Civic Sedan 1.5T (Tie) 32 City / 42 Highway / 36 Combined
3. Jaguar XE Diesel (Tie) 32 City / 42 Highway / 36 Combined
6. Honda Fit 33 City / 40 Highway / 36 Combined
7. Toyota Yaris Sedan (Tie) 32 City / 40 Highway / 35 Combined
7. Hyundai Elantra Eco (Tie) 32 City / 40 Highway / 35 Combined
9. Jaguar XF Diesel 31 City / 42 Highway / 35 Combined
10. Kia Forte FE 31 City / 41 Highway / 35 Combined

None are rated >40mpg for combined. The best in city mpg is 36 mpg. Most are either subcompact or compact car or if larger it is diesel. If those EPA numbers are accurate, PRIUS or even my old 2008 HCH is still better fuel efficiency wise. But in real world, if they are able to score >40 mpg in mostly city drive, then I really have to re-think my next car purchase choices.

 

It all depends on the driver. On the '04 Sienna (FWD, not AWD) that my family had, I was able to get ~28 MPG city and ~32 MPG highway when I drove it conservatively. My family regularly got 24 MPG city, 29 MPG highway driving it normally. Compared to our old '06 Chrysler minivan that got 22 MPG combined and the '01 Pontiac minivan that got 24 MPG combined.

Hybrids don't really get better fuel economy on the highway; around town they excel because the braking and acceleration can be taken upon by the battery. Driving conscientiously can also reduce the fuel economy hit around town.

Check out Fuelly for accurate, real world numbers.

 

I don't know that EPA figures are reliable, but they should be fairly consistent for comparative purposes. As such, I'd think that a Prius wouldn't really be worth the premium if the majority of driving is highway, where mine, for example, rarely much bettered 50mpg once it was above 65mph. It did return a fairly reliable 55mpg at 55mph however.

Where the Prius really shone was city, where 'gassers' rarely return much better than 30mpg, but the Prius could get around 60.

 

The lifetime for my 2016 Camry is 34mpg(display is about 2mpg higher) on a commute that I'd say is two thirds highway. I haven't installed the scangauge yet. The Sonic was around 37mpg lifetime with the scangauge. Most drivers would get lower since I expect they wouldn't keep the turbo out of boost.

Engine efficiency has simply gotten better over time. The majority of the improvements seen in the Prius is because of the engine.

It is also why the small(Rav4 class) SUVs have become popular. They are as efficient, maybe better, than the older car they are replacing.

 

Was you Sienna V6? Though I am not sure if Sienna was ever fitted with 4 cylinder engine. The AWD Sienna was our last minivan. We did own Dodge Grand Caravan, and Nissan Quest twice before that. But I was not even thinking of fuel efficiency those days. Not sure how they did compared to AWD V6 Sienna we had. We recently purchased used Pathfinder Hybrid to replace our minivan needs. It gets better mileage than our old Sienna, but still not good enough to my liking.

I think EPA figures got much better in last ten years, and more comparable to the real life mpg. That said YMMV is always true. And yes, Prius for city drive is always the best. My current drive is 80%+ in city and very little highway drive. If any gasser that can do >40 mpg in city, I may have to pick it for my next commuter.

 

Thanks for the explanation. I am relieved to know that I am still driving the most fuel efficient car for my use. If my life style changes in someway that requires more frequent highway drives, then a gasser may gets on my next car buying list.