FORT WORTH, Texas - Dottie Love does her homework before buying a car. Last year, Love began researching the Toyota Prius, a gas-electric hybrid, in hopes it would save her money on her 100-mile-a-day commute. She was soon faced with conflicting data.
Consumer Reports said the car would get an average of 50 miles per gallon. But the Environmental Protection Agency said the car would get closer to 60 mpg.
Conversations with Prius owners online indicated she should expect to get the lower figure.
"Nobody gets 60 mpg," Love said. She eventually bought the car and reliably gets 50, she said.
Sticker shock at the pump has more drivers thinking about fuel economy. As Americans get used to gas prices above $2 a gallon, new car buyers are taking a closer look at the miles-per-gallon data on the sticker.
But those who want an accurate estimate of mileage may be disappointed by some fuzzy math that goes into the calculations.
The mileage estimates for city and highway driving provided by the EPA have been routinely inflated because of an unrealistic methodology used since the federal agency began testing vehicles in 1974, according to critics such as AAA.
"When a consumer is told your mileage may vary - it probably should say, `Your results WILL vary,'" said Susan Pikrallidas, AAA vice president of public affairs.
The EPA puts new models on an enormous treadmill and runs them for different periods of time. For the highway estimate, the EPA simulates a 10-mile trip with an average speed of 48 mph.
Now the EPA is re-evaluating its test to make the agency's mileage estimates more accurate. Recommendations for updating the process are expected this year.
The newly designed test will likely incorporate several common driving habits that burn extra gas, including air conditioning and driving in congested areas, the EPA says.
A recent CNN/USA Today/Gallup survey shows that more than half of Americans are thinking of buying a more fuel-efficient car in the future.
Changed view
When Peter Stamps shopped for a new vehicle late last year, a sport utility vehicle seemed to fit one of his primary needs. He wanted something big enough to accommodate his wife and two children.
But the engineer quickly ruled out the option. "I was looking for something that had decent mileage," Stamps said.
He eventually bought a Chrysler Town and Country. The mileage sticker at the dealership said the minivan would get 18 mpg in city driving and 27 mpg on the highway.
