Nice car — so what’s the ppmpg?
Fuel efficiency once ranked somewhere near seatback pocket elasticity on the U.S. auto buyer’s list of priorities. Now Priuses fly off lots and F-350s linger longer.
To reflect those new realities, Consumer Reports created a new metric: price per mile per gallon.
The formula for the ppmpg is simple: divide sticker price, including options, by mpg. The result is the price for each mile per gallon. That means that each of the 32 mpg the Honda Fit got in the magazine’s tests costs $476. For the Hyundai Elantra GLS, the number was $650.
Because the price includes options, the extra cost of a sunroof and snazzy sound system — neither of which have anything to do with fuel efficiency — will change the equation.
source: Automotive News - subscription required