As everybody on EcoModder knows, the EPA doesn't test cars to determine what mileage rating is posted on window stickers -- it's the automakers themselves who perform the tests, by (supposedly) following procedures laid out by the EPA. The automakers then submit their results to the EPA for publication.
The EPA began auditing selected vehicles about 3 years ago to try to keep the automakers honest. (I can't believe they didn't audit them before that. Talk about foxes in the henhouse!)
As a result of a series of inflated/corrected MPG scandals (hello BMW, Kia/Hyundai, and Ford), and increasing consumer attention on fuel economy, the EPA has announced it's going to publicly release its audit results.
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The audits were meant to double-check the results of the "coast-down" test, which was the source of the controversy over exaggerated Hyundai and Kia fuel economy numbers last year.
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Getting the coast-down test data correct is key, because those results are fed into the dyno and used during the actual fuel consumption tests -- that data directly affects the programmed "resistance" of the dyno against the vehicle being tested. So you can see why getting it right is critical. (And why Ford was foolish and disingenuous to use the Fusion's coast-down data as the basis for the C-Max MPG ratings, even if it was permitted on a technicality.)
Those coastdown times capture the sum effects of the vehicle's aerodynamic properties, rolling resistance & drivetrain drag.
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The EPA says it will translate the raw data into "plain English" for public consumption.
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Should be interesting!
Source:
EPA Will Release Results Of Its Gas Mileage Audits