Figures produced by Emission Analytics as part of its Snapshot info graphic series show that European vehicles significantly outperform those on American roads when it comes to fuel economy figures.

Emissions Analytics specialise in providing real world fuel consumption figures and uses special on-board emission analysis equipment to get true and accurate fuel consumption data on specific vehicle models in real life driving conditions.

Based on tests carried out on 660 cars in the UK and a similar representative car parc of 276 US vehicles, the company has found average fuel consumption in Europe was 44.2 miles per gallon and in the US was only 29.9 mpg. This is the equivalent of 6.4 litres of fuel per 100 km for cars in Europe, while US cars need 9.4 litres on average to cover the 100 km.

The figures support the general car buying stereotypes with an American preference for gas guzzlers driving down national average fuel economy figures. In Europe two factors appear to have a big influence, the preference for smaller cars and the more widespread choice of frugal diesel engines which perform better in mpg tests.