All About Japan Autos

When gas prices rise, car shoppers start paying attention to the fuel economy of the cars they’re considering. Finding fuel economy estimates is easy for new car shoppers, thanks to EPA window stickers. “The stickers, available for all vehicles sold in the USA since 1984, include not only the city, highway, and combined mpg ratings, a photo and information about vehicle, such as engine size, transmission and recommended fuel grade,” writes USA Today.

But if you’re on the lookout for a fuel-efficient used car, getting that information requires a little more digging. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) now provides a tool that will generate window stickers to display used car fuel economy, just like new cars have. The fuel economy estimates are not the same estimates that the car had when it was new; they take into account updated calculations to determine miles per gallon that the EPA started using in 2008. “The new estimates take into account the higher freeway speeds, greater use of air conditioners, colder temperatures, and faster acceleration typical of modern traffic,” says Consumer Reports. “They tend to be a couple of miles per gallon lower than widow stickers for the same cars prior to 2008.”

Car owners looking to sell their used cars and consumers interested in vehicle fuel economy can check out the new fuel economy sticker tool at www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/sticker.jsp.

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