[rodybmw]

I tried searching for the answer to my question, but couldn't find any posts addressing it. I had a 2015 228xi which was totaled a few months ago and now I'm looking into replacing it with an M240i. Looking at sales listings for the M240i I noticed there are differing EPA fuel economy numbers for the different model year M240i's. Model year 2018 and 2019 are the same, but are different from 2017, and all three are different from 2020. Did BMW make any changes to the engine or anything else that would make an impact on the fuel economy of the deferent model year M240i's? Here are the EPA ratings in Miles Per Gallon for an Automatic transmission M240i Coupe:

2017: City 21, Highway 32, Combined 25
2018: City 21, Highway 30, Combined 24
2019: City 21, Highway 30, Combined 24
2020: City 22, Highway 30, Combined 25

The reason I ask isn't so much that I'm concerned about a difference of 1 or 2 MPG from year to year, but just to clarify what is the reason for the different fuel economy ratings for the same car with seemingly the same engine and drivetrain.

Thanks in Advance for the info.

[USA-RET]

I believe the EPA rates each new model for MPG. Variance is likely to the day they do the test and changes to their testing methodology.

FYI

https://www.epa.gov/fueleconomy

[Throttlesteer14]

The difference in fuel economy is likely going to be more related to your driving style than the EPA ratings. It will all come down to how heavy your right foot is.

[harma24]

Originally Posted by Throttlesteer14

It will all come down to how heavy your right foot is.

And how heavy the traffic is. I'd love to hit 21mpg on my commute. In normal Boston traffic, I average <20.

[H2O_Doc]

This might help explain some of it:


https://www.edmunds.com/fuel-economy...a-ratings.html

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by H2O_Doc

This might help explain some of it:

That's an excellent piece. I think we can consider curb weight differences to have some effect as well.

[cristo]

Lighter grade oil viscosity recommendations,
fine tuning and tweaks in ECU and comfort/ECO
mode, and other similar things can make a small
difference, too.

[rodybmw]

Thanks for your replies to my question everyone! I do understand that the biggest factors in fuel economy are driving style, environment, using A/C, and many other things. As an example, when my son drove the now-totaled 228xi the fuel economy that he would get would be between 20 and 21 MPG. That's very low for a 228, but his drive was 100% city driving with the A/C on most of the time (we live in the Los Angeles area where we get many hot days). Occasionally I would drive the 228 for a day or two and the milage would jump up to around 30 since I would drive 75% highway, 25% city....and I know how to maintain speed while being light on the gas pedal.....my son hasn't learned how to do that yet.

That said, the reason for my original question was that I assumed the EPA testing would be the same exact method/cycle every year (even if the manufacturers are doing the testing themselves as discussed in the article above)...so that's why I asked whether there were other factors between the 2017 to 2020 model years (changes in the engine, software, drivetrain, etc.).

[Winemaker2]

I tuned my car so city is a disgrace but hwy holds up:

City 19-20 if I don't push it, Hwy 32, and Combined 25.