Being an asterisk regarding fuel economy numbers isn’t the only penance Hyundai and Kia must pay: The U.S. Department of Justice, the Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board dropped a collective $300 million penalty on the South Korean brands for mistating fuel economy numbers on their respective 2011-2013 lineups.
Autoblog reports the two alone will pay a total of $100 million to the EPA, the highest such fine in the agency’s history. Hyundai’s part of the bill comes to $56.8 million, while Kia will foot the remaining $43.2 million. The brands will also forfeit 4.75 million greenhouse emissions credits, worth approximately $200 million, and contribute a requested $50 million in investments “to prevent future violations of the Clean Air Act” by automakers.
In-house, parent company Hyundai is establishing “an independent certification test group” to handle future fuel economy testing and reporting, along with training proctors on the proper methods. The company maintains the erroneous reporting was due to the methodology used in the EPA’s test schedule, as well as errors from the coastdown portion of the test.
Hyundai and Kia are also auditing 2015 and 2016 models for accurate fuel economy numbers in light of the previous errors.
To expect to get the same mileage as stated on the sticker is idiotic!
Apparently so is lying about the numbers on your sticker.
I wouldn’t be surprised to hear of a similar fate for Ford in the next couple years.
If you followed the ridiculous Apple vs Samsung patent courtcases you knew Ametican companies have a leg up in American courts.
Yeah, as soon as I read this Ford popped right into my mind. A friend of mine is thinking about getting an ecoboost Mustang and asked about economy. I told her the V6 will probably do better in the long run but its possible as long as you don’t press the start button on the ecoboost car.
I like Ford but the bottom line with the whole ecoboost story is that they are full of shit and liars.
>>I like Ford but the bottom line with the whole ecoboost story is that they are full of shit and liars.<<
C&D notes that disparity just today:
"At 7.3 seconds to 60 mph, acceleration of this most powerful model is only middling for the segment. Older Fusion V-6s were half a second quicker. More disappointingly, the turbo four is just as thirsty as a V-6. We averaged 20 mpg, below even the Fusion’s EPA city rating of 22 and nowhere near the 31-mpg highway rating. For those who’ve been paying attention to Ford’s EcoBoost strategy, this comes as no surprise. Whether they’re installed in F-150s, family crossovers, or Fiestas, these downsized turbo engines have rarely lived up to the promises made by the fuel-economy label. "
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/ford-fusion-titanium-20l-ecoboost-awd-test-review
Is this comment supposed to be relevant to the topic here? This issue is about correctly determining and reporting the results of a standardized test, not consumer expectations regarding the published results.
Although I agree, some of the vehicles in the question were outright falsifications. It’s one thing to be off by 10% or 15%, its another thing when you’re off by as much as 30%.
“To expect to get the same mileage as stated on the sticker is idiotic!”
Then I’m idiotic. I’ve never not managed to meet the mileage stated on the sticker. If you can’t, may the problem isn’t with the vehicle (or you bought a Hyundai).
Fuel Economy is a ridiculous “ratio” based on numerous subjective variables.
Driver mass.
Passenger mass.
Cargo mass.
Driving habits.
Traffic…
Hence the standardized test (even if it has flaws imho).
Test numbers tell you how the car behaves compated to other cars under given conditions. Not how it behaves in your case.
Apparently Hyundai/Kia reported only the highest-performing part of the tested sample size. That is fraud whatever your personal political views might be, or whether you think “expecting to get the same mileage as stated on the sticker is idiotic”.
Got caught in the mid-00s fudging horsepower numbers (2.7 V6 and 2.0L L4, I believe)…let that settle, then try this.
You’ve not seen overstated claims untill you’ve seen the comsumption numbers that the Government of Canada publishes:
http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/efficiency/transportation/cars-light-trucks/buying/7487
I guess I don’t understand the process. It sounds as if the manufacturers have to follow the parameters of the testing, and then give the results to the government. Do consumers really take the EPA ratings seriously? I thought we all pretty much figured out the EPA ratings are relative to other vehicles. Heck, where did the “Your mileage may vary” statement come from? So just how far off are they? How much different is that from other manufacturers?
As someone pointed out above, sounds like they only sent the highest results to the EPA, not the entire sample as directed.
I wonder what the shame and subsequent spin in South Korea on this will be. It will likely be that the Company made a slight and accidental mistake, and the US government came down hard on Korea’s favorite chaebol.
How much is Ford being fined considering it’s admitted to lying about the EPA numbers by up to 7 mpg, more than Hyundai/Kia were? Oh, wait, that’s right, they weren’t.