The headline "VW diesel hatchback gets 72 mpg" over at mobilemag.com reminded me that it will be easier to attain the goal of 100mpg in Canada than in the USA.
That's because the Canadian gallon is larger than the US gallon, allowing us to travel more miles on each gallon of gasoline. It's not so much a "Canadian" gallon as the imperial (or British) measure. The difference:
1 Imperial gallon = 4.55 liters
1 US gallon = 3.79 liters
Thus, Canadians can travel 20% further on a gallon. That American 72mpg becomes 86mpg north of the border. In reality, the mpg claimed by car makers is theoretical, and I find that the mpg claimed in the USA is similar to the real-life mpg in Canada.
And, Canadian gallons don't exist -- officially. We are supposed to think litres, and express "milage" as litres per 100km, which makes no sense to me. I don't care how many litres it takes to travel 100km, because my trips are rarely 100km.
Comments