Business Chicks latte JuneJuly Page 46

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'm not talking about the one that sits in the middle of
the bonnet, but the one that sits on the windscreen of
a new car; the Fuel Consumption Label. Yeh, I know,
there are no celebs or models pushing this label so you
won't read about it in the gossip mags, but the label can
help you to save money and care for the environment.

How?

The Fuel Consumption Label shows how many litres of fuel
a vehicle uses to travel 100 kilometres and how many grams
of carbon dioxide- CO2 the vehicle emits each kilometre
travelled. Carbon dioxide is the gas that is the largest
contributor to the greenhouse effect. The ratings are based
on a standard test procedure so you can reliably compare the
performance of different models under identical conditions.

The lower the numbers, the better it is for your wallet and

our environment.

All new vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes gross vehicle mass sold in

Australia, regardless of fuel or body type, are required by law
to have a Fuel Consumption Label on the front windscreen.
This includes passenger cars, four wheel drives and light
commercial vehicles.

Why Are There 3 Different Fuel Consumption Figures?

The label will show how much fuel a car uses in Urban (city)
driving as well as Extra Urban which includes suburban
and freeway driving. Both of these figures are then used to
calculate the combined fuel consumption usage. When you see
an advertised fuel consumption figure, it generally refers to
the combined figure. Only 1 CO2 figure is shown on the label,
which relates to the combined fuel consumption figure.

What's a Good Figure?

We all know that a size 8 or 10 pair of pants is for the slighter
ones amongst us, but not many of us know off the top of our
head what a good fuel consumption or CO2 emission figure
is. Let's keep this simple by looking at the most and least
fuel efficient cars in Australia. The most fuel efficient is the
Fiat 500 1.3 litre diesel consuming 4.2 litres per 100kms.
And the least fuel efficient car is the Ferrari 575M F1 sculling
21.8 litres per 100kms. Try to look for a car with the fuel
consumption under about 7 litres per 100kms and CO2
emissions of less than 130gms/km.

The size of the engine, type of car (small vs large SUV) and

fuel used (diesel vs petrol) will all affect how much fuel it
drinks and the level of CO2it emits.

Are the Figures Accurate?

While the fuel label provides standard fuel consumption and
CO2 figures for comparing different vehicles, it should
be regarded as a guide. You may experience different
results when actually driving the vehicle because the fuel
consumption of a particular vehicle will depend on what traffic
conditions it is driven in, how you drive the vehicle and how
well the vehicle is maintained.

Want To Know More?

The Fuel Consumption Label scheme is administered by
the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional
Development and Local Government. To find out more visit
www.greenvehicleguide.gov.au

Melissa Pye is the Founder and Managing Director of

www.HerCar.com.au

Some labels carry brand names that make us feel
cool, while other labels provide us with valuable
information. When it comes to cars, labels can be
important, as Melissa Pye explains.

Label

over