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Old 03-28-2014, 12:46 PM   #36 (permalink)
MetroMPG
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Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: 1000 Islands, Ontario, Canada
Posts: 22,534

Blackfly - '98 Geo Metro
Team Metro
Last 3: 70.09 mpg (US)

MPGiata - '90 Mazda Miata
90 day: 54.46 mpg (US)

Appliance car Mirage - '14 Mitsubishi Mirage ES (base)
90 day: 57.73 mpg (US)
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Gearing: Fiesta vs. Mirage highway numbers

Tim and I were talking about this again today: how does the Fiesta get a much better highway rating than the manual Mirage -- 45 vs. 42 mpg US. Consider that the Fiesta is less aerodynamic and significantly heavier (yes, I know that has a smaller impact on steady-state cruising, but the EPA tests change speeds a lot).

It must come down to much taller gearing in the Ford (or fudging the numbers again).

So I did a bit of searching. I didn't find any actual specs for gear ratios, but I did find two separate reviews of the US car which described the gearing as unusually tall:

Quote:
Ford [equipped the Fiesta with] a tall fifth gear (taller than the Euro Fiesta) for ... improved EPA numbers but the decisions take a toll on performance and driveability. ... The tall top gear means frequent downshifts on moderate inclines.
Source: Review: 2014 Ford Fiesta Hatchback (With Video) | The Truth About Cars

(Then the reviewer goes on to complain about the gearing, and says he prefers the automatic. )

An American car with taller than Euro gearing! Shocking! Blasphemy even!

The Euro Mirage gets a taller final drive in the manual, following the typical pattern.
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