A Question for Euro Jalops

"Jonathan Hays" (K5Blazer91)
08/07/2013 at 17:49 • Filed to: None

I was just watching the recent Chris Harris wagon episode on the front page and I couldn't help but be slightly confused at what he said early on in the show. I realize the our European friends are on the metric system, but I also know that the UK still often quotes distance in MPG rather than KPL despite measuring the size of fuel tanks in liters (litres?). In the episode Chris mentions the 14 liter fuel tank in the Audi and then goes on to explain the mileage of around 25 for the Merc (or was it the Audi?).

Would this not be confusing as a driver? You buy your "petrol" by the liter, yet drive by the mile. It seems like the mental conversion from how many miles per gallon you've traveled to the amount of liters left in your fuel tank could be tricky.

Slight Edit: wrote KPH, meant KPL (I think - whatever's the opposite of MPG). Also, might have the fuel tank size wrong up there.

DISCUSSION (20)

Montalvo > Jonathan Hays
08/07/2013 at 17:55

You are talking about his drive videos right? I believe most of the view base is here stateside. Top gear also do speed and efficiency in U.S. standard but I have no idea why. Intersting question...

nippon > Jonathan Hays
08/07/2013 at 17:56

IIRC, they have gallons in UK. So they use MPG(miles per gallon), rest of us europeans use liters. We buy fuel per liter and we calculate our average consumption in liters per 100km. 25mpg would be something like 9.5l/100km.

pdthedeuce > Jonathan Hays
08/07/2013 at 17:56

...plus the gallon is a different size there...

Hoccy > Jonathan Hays
08/07/2013 at 17:58

The British are a bit different than the rest of Europe, because they still use the imperial system and drive on the left side of the road.

Continental Europe uses kilometers, and then of course km/h and litres per 100km to measure speed and fuel consumption.

But of course, you'll always find examples of the metric system in the UK and the imperial in continental Europe.

Mikeado > Jonathan Hays
08/07/2013 at 18:02

I think we mostly use SI units in Britain, but yeah, if you ever have to work out something with those two units in it, it is a bit of a pain in the arse.

We use MPH, MPG, kg, lb/ft (although car companies recently switched to NM without telling anyone...) and litres, although I think it's one of those units where it's sometimes quoted in both imperial gallons and litres. Just in case...

Mikeado > nippon
08/07/2013 at 18:02

We buy fuel per litre too. But use MPG o_0

Mikeado > Montalvo
08/07/2013 at 18:03

He doesn't translate it to American, though. Otherwise he'd tell you the price in dollars and so on.

davedave1111 > Jonathan Hays
08/07/2013 at 18:07

It would be tricky if anyone ever did it. Most people just look at their fuel gauge. If someone did want to convert, though, it's not that hard. There are 4.54 litres in an Imperial gallon, so 45 litres is close enough to 10 gallons. For a rough approximation, just divide by five.

The UK is fairly unique, as far as I know, in mixing the Imperial and Metric systems, so pretty much everyone here is comfortable with both.

Jonathan Hays > Montalvo
08/07/2013 at 18:07

Yeah, the recent Drive episode on the front page now. It seems weird that it is done that way, I looked at some Euro manufacturer websites and they seem to quote range in KPH.

Jonathan Hays > Mikeado
08/07/2013 at 18:09

I thought that was the way it was. I think I've seen some TG episodes where they've filled up in litres at the pump.

Jonathan Hays > pdthedeuce
08/07/2013 at 18:10

They certainly don't make it easy to understand...haha

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > Jonathan Hays
08/07/2013 at 18:13

Yeah.. first of all, there is no way that the tank is 14 litres, but I'll let that slip :) ALL of Europe (well, not the UK perhaps) buy fuel pr litre and drive pr kilometer.. The only place you'll get miles as a unit of speed would be in the UK :) And as for fuel consumption, here in Norway we calculate that as litres pr kilometer (the germans does it the other way around me thinks) But nonethelesss, we use the metric system all the way, unless you are in the UK that is.

Jonathan Hays > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
08/07/2013 at 18:23

Haha, I watched the episode earlier in the afternoon, couldn't remember the exact size of the tank, other than that he thought it was a bit small. The UK are just behind the rest of Europe I guess, can't make up their minds if they want to be Imperial or Metric. Ha

Thanks for the insight.

Jonathan Hays > davedave1111
08/07/2013 at 18:25

I see, I'm sure the conversion isn't that difficult if you grow up with it. I guess old habits die hard, maybe one day they'll be all metric.

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > Jonathan Hays
08/07/2013 at 18:27

No worries mate, we jalops must stick togehter.. the whole car thing is a minefield yeah :)

But.. 14 litres? He MUST've been talking about 14 gallons...

Montalvo > Mikeado
08/07/2013 at 18:45

True but price is relative as it is not just a simple price adjustment via exchange rate. I think it just may be a unwritten convention where some people just use the unit of their preference. I know there is a lot of other journalists and reviewers that use KPH instead.

Jonathan Hays > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
08/07/2013 at 18:45

I'm sure he said something else, I tried to re-watch the video, but I can't get it to load where I'm at.

Mikeado > Montalvo
08/07/2013 at 18:50

At any [conversion] rate, he always uses UK figures in his videos. There's just plenty of cross-over.

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > Jonathan Hays
08/07/2013 at 18:51

Now what, I'm pretty sure he said something else as well.... but I'm drunk as frak right now.. so let me jusst give you a video of a Deltic Napier engine

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > Jonathan Hays
08/07/2013 at 19:47

Yep. Very confusing.

Also, to make it even more confusing, our gallons are different to US gallons, although I forget which way it swings.