Ford Mustang V8 and four cylinder more efficient in real world than expected

The Australian Automobile Association (AAA) has put another 12 vehicles through its paces with the intention of highlighting real-world efficiency compared to lab-tested – and advertised – results.

Out of the 12 models, the Ford Mustang – both the V8-powered GT and four-cylinder EcoBoost – and Mercedes-Benz GLE 450d were found to better their stated fuel use figures.

For the pair of Fords, the EcoBoost returned an 8.8 litres per 100km result, down six per cent on its 9.4L/100km official rating.

However, the GT – with its 5.0-litre petrol V8 – used 10.7L/100km, down 22 per cent on its 13.6L/100km ADR-approved consumption figure, making it the biggest variance of all petrol and hybrid powertrains tested in this round.

The Mercedes-Benz meanwhile, improved on its fuel-use rating by 11 per cent, achieving a 6.6L/100km figure.

At the other end of the spectrum, the GWM Tank 300 used 11.9L/100km, up 25 per cent over its stated 9.5L/100km figure.

The remaining vehicles tested – the Mercedes-Benz C300, Hyundai Kona, and Kia Tasman – all only saw marginal differences with lab-tested results, sipping three, five, and four per cent more fuel respectively.

The AAA also tested two electric vehicles for range in the latest round, the BYD Seal and BMW iX1.

While the BYD Seal saw a 25 per cent decrease in real-world driving range compared to its lab tested result, 488km of range down from 650km, the Chinese brand has certified its model on outdated NEDC figures.

When tested to the now-industry benchmark WLTP lab-test standard, the stated driving range of the BYD Seal drops to 570km, meaning the discrepancy is only a 14.4 per cent drop from the AAA real-world result.

The BMW iX1 meanwhile, achieved a real-world range (360km) 10 per cent shy of its 400km rating.

In total, the AAA has now tested 141 vehicles, with its results showing 76 per cent of that batch to exceed advertised figures.

AAA managing director Michael Bradley said testing vehicles for real-world efficiency was born from the ‘dieselgate’ saga, and designed to give buyers more transparency.

“Our program was created in response to the Volkswagen scandal, which revealed how the German auto giant wilfully misled 11 million of its own customers as well as emissions regulators across the globe, by cheating laboratory tests used to police environmental rules,” Bradley said.

“The AAA supports the introduction of increasingly stringent vehicle emissions regulation, but we also want to make sure our car fleet is getting cleaner in the real-world, not just in the lab.

“By independently measuring fuel use and emissions performance in real-world conditions, this Program provides transparency about NVES-related emissions reductions, and the degree to which they are being realised on Australian roads.”

To test the vehicles, the AAA uses a 90km-long circuit near Geelong, Victoria, which encompasses inner-city and freeway driving.

AAA real-world EV efficiency testing latest results: released on February 25, 2025

Tung Nguyen has been in the automotive journalism industry for over a decade, cutting his teeth at various publications before finding himself at Drive in 2024. With experience in news, feature, review, and advice writing, as well as video presentation skills, Tung is a do-it-all content creator. Tung’s love of cars first started as a child watching Transformers on Saturday mornings, as well as countless hours on PlayStation’s Gran Turismo, meaning his dream car is a Nissan GT-R, with a Liberty Walk widebody kit, of course.

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