Is the NEDC Combined Fuel Consumption Accurate?
2 Answers
NEDC combined fuel consumption serves as the reference standard for electric vehicle range testing in China. The NEDC test cycle consists of two parts: ECE (Urban Driving Cycle) and EUDC (Extra-Urban Driving Cycle). Purpose of ECE: It is used to simulate traditional urban road conditions, composed of four ECE15 cycles. Each ECE15 cycle includes 15 driving conditions such as acceleration, deceleration, constant speed, and idling. The ECE duration is 780 seconds, with a total driving distance of 4.052 km and an average speed of 18.7 km/h. It features low speed, low load, and low exhaust temperature characteristics. Purpose of EUDC: EUDC is used to simulate suburban road conditions, with a duration of 400 seconds, a driving distance of 6.955 km, and an average speed of 62.6 km/h. The maximum speed in this segment reaches 120 km/h.
I've been driving for over a decade and found that NEDC fuel consumption figures are practically from a fantasy world. Those tests are conducted in labs, simulating flat road conditions and constant speeds with the air conditioning turned off, but reality is completely different. For example, driving in the city with frequent red lights and heavy traffic can make actual fuel consumption significantly higher than advertised. On highways, driving slightly faster or carrying more weight widens the gap even further. This isn't just talk—I've been using a mobile app to track my actual fuel consumption, and it's consistently 20% to 30% higher than NEDC figures. The key issue is that the NEDC standard is outdated. The current WLTP test is more realistic, incorporating complex urban and suburban scenarios. My advice to friends car shopping: don't take NEDC data at face value, pay more attention to WLTP values, and learn some fuel-saving techniques like gentle acceleration and maintaining steady speeds. Regular maintenance helps too—I've seen cases where underinflated tires just burned fuel for nothing. Real-world fuel consumption depends on road conditions and driving habits, not just test results.
