Peugeot, Citroen and DS Brands Report Real World Fuel Consumption Figures

Leading French automaker PSA Peugeot Citroen has become the first to publish real world fuel consumption figures in a bid to build credibility among car owners. At the 2016 Geneva Motor Show PSA Peugeot Citroen revealed the real world fuel consumption figures of the Peugeot 308, Citroen C4 Grand Picasso and DS 3; all equipped with the same 120 hp 1.6L Blue HDi diesel engine and manual transmission.

The cars were tested in real-life driving situations on an 80 km public road circuit near Paris and involves roads in town, out of town, with hills as well as motorways; all this with luggage, passengers and air conditioning, according to PSA.

This public road circuit test procedure was conceived together with three non-governmental organizations namely, Transport and Environment, France Nature Environment and Bureau Veritas. The real world test results show a discrepancy of between 30% – 40% against the official combined economy figures normally advertised.

For the Peugeot 308, the real world result was 56.5 mpg (20 km/l) vs 88.3 mpg (31.3 km/l) in the Combined NEDC (New European Driving Cycle); Citroen C4 Grand Picasso – 50.4 mpg (17.8 km/l) vs 70.6 mpg (25 km/l) and DS 3 – 57.6 mpg (20.4 km/l) vs 78.5 mpg (27.8 km/l).

The test cars were driven by a group of professional and amateur drivers and the test replicates everyday acceleration, braking and constant-speed running. PSA says the test is repeatable and reliable, even though factors like wind, temperature and driving style cannot be perfectly replicated over and over like in a lab setting. However, on-road tests are cancelled if the wind is too strong. Likewise if the driving style or traffic conditions fall outside the acceptable limit; the tests are monitored by GPS. The cold-start part of the test, which normally weighs heavily in terms of fuel consumption, is also ‘factored’ into the result.

“We have come up with a very strong vision that will give full transparency for our customers,” said PSA chairman Carlos Tavares. “This new test cycle will be much more representative of a consumer’s real driving experience.” PSA is planning to reveal the real world consumption figures for another 30 more models later this year.