Real World Mileage vs Claimed Mileage: For years, Indian car buyers have relied on the “claimed mileage” printed in brochures as a key deciding factor. In 2025, that number still matters — but only as a benchmark.
Independent tests conducted over the past year show that the gap between certified fuel economy and everyday mileage remains wide, particularly in congested city environments where modern cars struggle to replicate laboratory conditions. The disparity isn’t new, but the size of the deviation for some models has surprised even seasoned testers.
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The Core Issue: Lab Tests vs Life on the Road
India’s official fuel-efficiency rating is based on the ARAI testing cycle, a controlled procedure conducted on a dynamometer under ideal temperatures and predictable load. Manufacturers treat this figure as a standard metric for comparison, but it is not designed to mirror chaotic real-world usage.
Out on the road, cars encounter constant variables — traffic, heat, uneven tarmac, and unpredictable driver behaviour. These are conditions even the most advanced test cycle cannot fully simulate. As a result, real-world mileage almost always trails the advertised number, and in 2025, the pattern has become even more pronounced.
City Driving: Where the Biggest Gap Appears
The most significant discrepancy shows up in dense urban traffic. Short bursts of acceleration, constant idling, heavy AC usage, and slow-moving queues all conspire to inflate fuel consumption.
This year’s tests highlight just how wide the margin can be:
- Citroën C3 Aircross: Nearly 55% lower than its claimed figure in city conditions, making it one of the starkest examples of the gap.
- Volkswagen Virtus 1.0 TSI: Around 54% below its certified number, largely due to frequent turbo spool-up and stop-go traffic.
- Maruti Swift (2024/25): A drop of over 46%, despite its reputation for efficiency.
What’s striking is that even lightweight hatchbacks and compact SUVs — a segment typically praised for economy — are delivering far lower numbers than buyers expect. As one tester pointed out, “Even a gentle right foot can’t overcome the sheer amount of time spent crawling in modern metro traffic.”
Hybrids Don’t Escape the Real World Either
Hybrids are often marketed as the antidote to poor mileage, and in many cases they do perform better than pure petrol models in cities. Yet they also show notable gaps.
Take Toyota’s Urban Cruiser Hyryder as an example. On paper, the hybrid promises close to 28 kmpl, but most city tests hover around the 18 kmpl mark. The gap isn’t unusual for a hybrid system, especially in traffic where the car struggles to stay in its electric zone for long.
Engineers familiar with Toyota’s setup often point out that gentle throttle inputs and steady speeds make a big difference. Unfortunately, India’s stop-start congestion rarely offers those ideal conditions, so the petrol engine ends up doing more work than buyers expect.
A similar trend shows up in global studies. A 2024 review published by the European Commission reported that plug-in hybrids tend to pollute far more in the real world than they do in certification tests — in some cases, more than triple the official CO₂ output.
The study suggested a simple reason: many owners don’t charge their cars as regularly as test cycles assume, meaning the vehicles operate as petrol-powered machines far more often than intended.
Highways Tell a More Balanced Story
On open highways, the picture improves. Consistent speeds, fewer gear changes, and reduced braking give engines a chance to operate closer to their optimal efficiency.
For example:
- Honda Elevate (petrol manual): Mixed driving showed a deviation of only around 11%, which is comparatively modest.
- Several compact SUVs and sedans even exceeded their claimed highway numbers during steady cruising, though this typically happens under light load and favourable conditions.
Still, the gap never fully disappears. Tyre pressure, luggage weight, surface quality, and crosswinds continue to influence fuel use. A family road trip with four passengers, luggage, and hill sections can quickly pull the numbers back down.
Why Mileage Drops: The Key Real-World Factors
Across segments and powertrains, the following factors consistently affect on-road fuel efficiency:
- Stop-and-go traffic
- Sudden acceleration or harsh braking
- Running the AC at full blast (especially in peak summer)
- Driving with heavy cargo or full occupancy
- Under-inflated tyres
- Poorly maintained engines or clogged air filters
- Broken roads, steep inclines, or frequent speed breakers
These variables help explain why even two owners of the same model can report wildly different mileage figures.
The 2025 Model Snapshot
Recent testing of popular mass-market cars illustrates the ongoing trend: (Real World Mileage vs Claimed Mileage)
| Model | Claimed (kmpl) | Real City (kmpl) | Deviation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maruti Swift | 25.75 | 13.78 | -46.5% |
| VW Virtus 1.0 | 18.7 | 8.50 | -54.5% |
| Hyundai Creta | 18.4 | 10.85 | -41% |
| Renault Triber | 18.4 | 9.95 | -45.9% |
| Toyota Hyryder Hybrid | 27.97 | 18.02 | -35.5% |
These numbers are not a criticism of manufacturers — they reflect how different real driving is from the controlled environment of test labs. Most carmakers themselves state that ARAI figures serve as a comparison tool, not a guarantee.
What This Means for Car Buyers in 2025
A mileage claim should be treated as a starting point, not a promise. When shortlisting a car:
- Match the vehicle to your daily route. If 80% of your usage is in the city, look for models known for urban efficiency rather than top-end credentials on the spec sheet.
- Look beyond the number. Engine tuning, transmission type, hybrid system behaviour, and vehicle weight often tell a more accurate story than the official figure.
- Expect variations. Even your own driving style can swing mileage by 10–20%. A smooth driver will always extract better efficiency than someone who accelerates hard at every opportunity.
- Factor in maintenance. Basic upkeep — tyre pressure, timely servicing, quality fuel — can have a surprisingly large impact on real-world results.
Conclusion: Real World Mileage vs Claimed Mileage
Here is the final thoughts on ‘Real World Mileage vs Claimed Mileage‘- Mileage figures printed in brochures aren’t useless — they still give buyers a rough idea of how one car stacks up against another. But anyone driving in India today knows those numbers rarely match what the odometer shows at the end of a busy week.
Daily driving brings its own chaos. One day you crawl behind buses for kilometres, the next day a flyover is shut and the detour eats into your tank. Add summer heat, AC running non-stop, and roads that seem to change texture every few metres, and the gap between the lab and the real world becomes obvious. No test cycle can replicate all of that.
That’s why it makes more sense for buyers to think about their own routine. Brochures can make any car look like a fuel-efficiency champion, but the real test is how it behaves on the roads you use every day. What ultimately matters is how the vehicle copes with your traffic, your route, and your driving pace — not what a lab report claims under perfect conditions.
Disclaimer: The real-world mileage figures mentioned in this article are based on independent tests, media evaluations, and user reports available at the time of writing. Actual fuel efficiency can vary depending on driving style, traffic conditions, vehicle load, maintenance, and weather. Manufacturers’ claimed mileage figures are sourced from official certification cycles and may differ from everyday usage. Readers are advised to treat the numbers as indicative, not guaranteed.
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Hello! I’m Raj Prajapati — Computer Science Engineer by degree and automobile content writer by passion. With 3+ years of experience in content writing, I currently serve as a senior writer at AutoMasala.in. I love breaking down automotive news, features, and launches into easy-to-read articles for auto lovers and curious readers.