Yahoo Autos Peugeot-Citroën Found an Actually Accurate Way to Report Fuel Economy
The difference between the EU-regulated laboratory test results and PSA's real-world figures is quite staggering.
Back in 2015, Peugeot-Citroën decided to earn back their buyer's trust by teaming up with two non-governmental organizations, Transport & Environment (T&E) and France Nature Environment (FNE) for some real-life fuel consumption testing, with the results getting audited by the certification pros at Bureau Veritas. Here's how they explain the process:
Based on the European Union's Real Driving Emissions (RDE) project, the procedure measures fuel consumption by means of a portable emissions measurement system (PEMS) installed on the vehicle. The measurements were made on public roads open to traffic (25 km / 15.5 mile Urban, 39 km / 24.2 mile Rural and 31 km / 19.2 mile Motorway) and under real-life driving conditions, notably with passenger and luggage loads, road gradients, and the use of air-conditioning systems. The measurements are comparable to those made by PSA customers (obtained from independent customer surveys).
Have a look at the numbers, but remember that these are UK mpg figures:
Talk about a 30% difference! What's more, PSA will offer a simulator on their websites to enable customers to predict their vehicles' fuel consumption based on driving style and conditions, which is handy.
The company's long term plan is to turn their DS brand into the French Audi, while Peugeot raises to Volkswagen levels with Citroën offering a budget alternative with a funky twist. Think Cactus.
