3 ms·

Somebody should do the math of pulling out to the gas station vs. driving with a full tank.

by csomar 5y ago

lotsofpulp 5y ago
With US engine sizes, fuel efficiency, and number of miles driven, I would guess it makes no difference for most people. Much fewer proportion of people are driving those peugots or other tiny cars where the weight of fuel would be material relative to the time it would take to fill up fuel more often. Another British thing that amazed me was their auto insurance prices were based on engine size, and they were fretting about the insurance cost between 2L and 3L cars, and all the vehicles we had in America were 4L+.
- azalemeth 5y ago
  No normal person needs a 4l car. You just don't. Heck, 3l is huge and not required with modern engine sizes; between 1 and 2l is plenty for the vast majority of people who are not farmers routinely getting stuck in mud whilst towing heavy equipment. In 2019, the average new petrol ("gas") car in the UK requires 5.7 l of fuel per 100 km (49.2 mpg) [1]. The corresponding figure for the US is ~9.44 l/100km (24.9 mpg [2,3]). We really, really need to decarbonise our economy worldwide and in many ways this fuel scare may be the catalyst required, with UK autotrader saying it was driving people to e-car retailers [4]. [1] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/energy-and-environment-data-tables-env https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/energy-a... [2] https://www.iea.org/reports/fuel-consumption-of-cars-and-vans https://www.iea.org/reports/fuel-consumption-of-cars-and-van... [3] https://www.epa.gov/automotive-trends/highlights-automotive-trends-report https://www.epa.gov/automotive-trends/highlights-automotive-... [4] https://www.theguardian.com/business/live/2021/sep/27/uk-petrol-crisis-panic-buying-suspends-competition-law-oil-army-ftse-sterling-business-live?page=with:block-6151c86e8f08af1b22786c6e#block-6151c86e8f08af1b22786c6e https://www.theguardian.com/business/live/2021/sep/27/uk-pet...
  - lotsofpulp 5y ago
    I know. My neighbor just upgraded from a mini SUV to a 5.7L pickup truck to commute to his office job. The spoils of a government that does not have a high fossil fuel tax.
- cameronh90 5y ago
  4L!? Are you towing an aeroplane? My most recent car was 1.1L and was fine for anything I used it for... I do agree that basing insurance on engine capacity is odd though. Why not power to weight ratio or something?

Somebody should do the math of pulling out to the gas station vs. driving with a full tank.

by csomar 5y ago

Somebody should do the math of pulling out to the gas station vs. driving with a full tank.

With US engine sizes, fuel efficiency, and number of miles driven, I would guess it makes no difference for most people. Much fewer proportion of people are driving those peugots or other tiny cars where the weight of fuel would be material relative to the time it would take to fill up fuel more often. Another British thing that amazed me was their auto insurance prices were based on engine size, and they were fretting about the insurance cost between 2L and 3L cars, and all the vehicles we had in America were 4L+.

azalemeth 5y ago
No normal person needs a 4l car. You just don't. Heck, 3l is huge and not required with modern engine sizes; between 1 and 2l is plenty for the vast majority of people who are not farmers routinely getting stuck in mud whilst towing heavy equipment. In 2019, the average new petrol ("gas") car in the UK requires 5.7 l of fuel per 100 km (49.2 mpg) [1]. The corresponding figure for the US is ~9.44 l/100km (24.9 mpg [2,3]). We really, really need to decarbonise our economy worldwide and in many ways this fuel scare may be the catalyst required, with UK autotrader saying it was driving people to e-car retailers [4]. [1] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/energy-and-environment-data-tables-env https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/energy-a... [2] https://www.iea.org/reports/fuel-consumption-of-cars-and-vans https://www.iea.org/reports/fuel-consumption-of-cars-and-van... [3] https://www.epa.gov/automotive-trends/highlights-automotive-trends-report https://www.epa.gov/automotive-trends/highlights-automotive-... [4] https://www.theguardian.com/business/live/2021/sep/27/uk-petrol-crisis-panic-buying-suspends-competition-law-oil-army-ftse-sterling-business-live?page=with:block-6151c86e8f08af1b22786c6e#block-6151c86e8f08af1b22786c6e https://www.theguardian.com/business/live/2021/sep/27/uk-pet...
- lotsofpulp 5y ago
  I know. My neighbor just upgraded from a mini SUV to a 5.7L pickup truck to commute to his office job. The spoils of a government that does not have a high fossil fuel tax.
cameronh90 5y ago
4L!? Are you towing an aeroplane? My most recent car was 1.1L and was fine for anything I used it for... I do agree that basing insurance on engine capacity is odd though. Why not power to weight ratio or something?