by At least, that’s what the Italian consumer rights association “Altroconsumo” claims. Tests have shown that the actual fuel consumption figures differ significantly from those declared by the manufacturers. The new FIAT Panda and Volkswagen Golf 1.6 TDI drew the most criticism from the Italians.
Road tests led researchers to conclude that these models are not as fuel-efficient as claimed. Specifically, their actual fuel consumption exceeds the official figures by 18-50%. As a result, the association intends to “extract” compensation from the automakers.
Experts at “Altroconsumo” armed themselves with calculators and determined that it would be fair for Fiat and Volkswagen to pay their customers amounts equivalent to the annual mileage of 15,000 kilometers. Note that this concerns overpayment, considering the declared fuel consumption figures. Thus, Fiat is expected to pay 247 euros, while the German automaker would owe 509 euros. The Italians attribute the discrepancy in fuel consumption to the fact that automakers deliberately use tires with low rolling resistance, reduce vehicle weight in every possible way, and conduct tests under ideal conditions. Hence, the significant difference between the declared and actual fuel consumption, which costs car owners an average of 300 euros per year.
Recall that, according to American studies, the average fuel overconsumption for most modern cars is 21%. Also, in 2012, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency already forced Hyundai and Kia to compensate customers for the difference between the declared and actual fuel consumption. P.S. It’s interesting—if Europeans with their gasoline and diesel face such a significant discrepancy in consumption, what would the actual overconsumption be on Ukrainian fuel?
We wouldn’t be surprised if it’s around 70%…
