§ 600.115-08 - Criteria for determining the fuel economy label calculation method for 2011 and later model year vehicles.

This section provides the criteria to determine if the derived 5-cycle method for determining fuel economy label values, as specified in § 600.210-08 (a)(2) or (b)(2), as applicable, may be used to determine label values for 2011 and later model year vehicles. Separate criteria apply to city and highway fuel economy for each test group. The provisions of this section are optional. If this option is not chosen, or if the criteria provided in this section are not met, fuel economy label values for 2011 and later model year vehicles must be determined according to the vehicle-specific 5-cycle method specified in § 600.210-08(a)(1) or (b)(1), as applicable. However, dedicated alternative-fuel vehicles, dual fuel vehicles when operating on alternative fuel, and MDPVs may use the derived 5-cycle method for determining fuel economy labels for 2011 and later model years whether or not the criteria provided in this section are met.

(a) City fuel economy criterion. (1) For each test group certified for emission compliance under § 86.1848-01 of this chapter, the FTP, HFET, US06, SC03 and Cold FTP tests determined to be official under § 86.1835-01 of this chapter are used to calculate the vehicle-specific 5-cycle city fuel economy which is then compared to the derived 5-cycle city fuel economy, as follows:

(i) The vehicle-specific 5-cycle city fuel economy from the official FTP, HFET, US06, SC03 and Cold FTP tests for the test group is determined according to the provisions of § 600.114-08(a) or (c) and rounded to the nearest one tenth of a mile per gallon.

(ii) Using the same FTP data as used in paragraph (a)(1)(i) of this section, the corresponding derived 5-cycle city fuel economy is calculated according to the following equation:

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(2) The derived 5-cycle fuel economy value determined in paragraph (a)(1)(ii) of this section is multiplied by 0.96 and rounded to the nearest one tenth of a mile per gallon.

(3) If the vehicle-specific 5-cycle city fuel economy determined in paragraph (a)(1)(i) of this section is greater than or equal to the value determined in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, then the manufacturer may base the city fuel economy estimates for the model types covered by the test group on the derived 5-cycle method specified in § 600.210-08(a)(2) or (b)(2), as applicable.

(b) Highway fuel economy criterion. The determination for highway fuel economy depends upon the outcome of the determination for city fuel economy in paragraph (a)(3) of this section for each test group.

(1) If the city determination for a test group made in paragraph (a)(3) of this section does not allow the use of the derived 5-cycle method, then the highway fuel economy values for all model types represented by the test group are likewise not allowed to be determined using the derived 5-cycle method, and must be determined according to the vehicle-specific 5-cycle method specified in § 600.210-08(a)(1) or (b)(1), as applicable.

(2) If the city determination made in paragraph (a)(3) of this section allows the use of the derived 5-cycle method, a separate determination is made for the highway fuel economy labeling method as follows:

(i) For each test group certified for emission compliance under § 86.1848-01 of this chapter, the FTP, HFET, US06, SC03 and Cold FTP tests determined to be official under § 86.1835-01 of this chapter are used to calculate the vehicle-specific 5-cycle highway fuel economy, which is then compared to the derived 5-cycle highway fuel economy, as follows:

(A) The vehicle-specific 5-cycle highway fuel economy from the official FTP, HFET, US06, SC03 and Cold FTP tests for the test group is determined according to the provisions of § 600.114-08(b)(1) and rounded to the nearest one tenth of a mile per gallon.

(B) Using the same HFET data as used in paragraph (b)(2)(i)(A) of this section, the corresponding derived 5-cycle highway fuel economy is calculated using the following equation:

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(ii) The derived 5-cycle highway fuel economy calculated in paragraph (b)(2)(i)(B) of this section is multiplied by 0.95 and rounded to the nearest one tenth of a mile per gallon.

(iii) (A) If the vehicle-specific 5-cycle highway fuel economy of the vehicle tested in paragraph (b)(2)(i)(A) of this section is greater than or equal to the value determined in paragraph (b)(2)(ii) of this section, then the manufacturer may base the highway fuel economy estimates for the model types covered by the test group on the derived 5-cycle method specified in § 600.210-08(a)(2) or (b)(2), as applicable.

(B) If the vehicle-specific 5-cycle highway fuel economy determined in paragraph (b)(2)(i)(A) of this section is less than the value determined in paragraph (b)(2)(ii) of this section, the manufacturer may determine the highway fuel economy for the model types covered by the test group on the modified 5-cycle equation specified in § 600.114-08(b)(2).

(c) The manufacturer will apply the criteria in paragraph (a) and (b) of this section to every test group for each model year.

(d) The tests used to make the evaluations in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section will be the official tests used to determine compliance with emission standards under § 86.1835-01(c). Adjustments and/or substitutions to the official test data may be made with advance approval of the Administrator.