An increase in fuel economy by 5 miles per gallon (mpg) does not translate to a constant fuel savings amount. Thus, trading a low-mpg car or truck for one with just slightly better mpg will save more fuel than trading a high-mpg car or truck for one that is even higher. For example, trading a truck that gets 15 mpg for a new one that gets 20 mpg will save 16.7 gallons of fuel for every 1,000 miles driven. In contrast, trading a 35 mpg car for a new car that gets 40 mpg will save 3.6 gallons of fuel for every 1,000 miles driven. These fuel savings are additive; that is, going from 15 mpg to 25 mpg saves 26.7 gallons per thousand miles driven — 16.7 gallons (15-20 mpg difference) plus 10.0 gallons (20-25 mpg difference).
Fuel Savings per Thousand Miles
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Supporting Information
| If you have a car with this fuel economy... | And you trade it for a car with this fuel economy... | You save this many gallons for every 1,000 miles you drive |
|---|---|---|
| 5 mpg | 10 mpg | 100.00 |
| 10 mpg | 15 mpg | 33.3 |
| 15 mpg | 20 mpg | 16.7 |
| 20 mpg | 25 mpg | 10.0 |
| 25 mpg | 30 mpg | 6.7 |
| 30 mpg | 35 mpg | 4.8 |
| 35 mpg | 40 mpg | 3.6 |
| 40 mpg | 45 mpg | 2.8 |
| 45 mpg | 50 mpg | 2.2 |
| 50 mpg | 55 mpg | 1.8 |
| 55 mpg | 60 mpg | 1.5 |
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