Fuel Costs of a Honda Fit EV: $0.03 to $0.04 per Mile?

Based on the fuel efficiency info just released for the Honda Fit EV, the new leader in the EPA’s fuel efficiency ratings, one of our readers did some quick calculations and came up with some interesting facts. I thought I’d quickly repost a few or these for more eyes to see, and also elaborate on them.

From Bob_Wallace: “kWh per mile for the Honda = 0.29. At $0.08/kWh that’s just slightly over 2 cents per mile.”

He then noted that a 50mpg gas-powered vehicle (aka ‘gasmobile’) would need $1.16/gallon of fuel to drive for so cheaply. I don’t think you can find that anywhere these days, do you?

Notably, not every place has electricity selling for $0.08/kWh. The average price of electricity for residential customers in the US is a little under $0.12/kWh these days (or about $0.0959 for all sectors combined).

But, even if you’re paying $0.12/kWh for electricity, you’d need gas to be at $1.74/gallon for a super fuel-efficient (by US standards) gas-powered car getting 50 mpg to be running for the same price.

However, the average fuel economy of vehicles sold in the US is actually far less than 50 mpg, it’s just approaching 24 mpg (May 2012). For such a car, you’d need gas to be selling for $0.8352/gallon to match the average fuel costs of a Honda Fit EV. Wow, good luck with that!

Now, I thought I’d run one more comparison while I was at it (yeah, this has turned into not such a quick repost). I thought I’d compare the Honda Fit EV to the most popular car on the roads these days, the Toyota Corolla. The Toyota Corolla has an average fuel economy rating of 29-30 mpg according to the EPA. Going with the slightly better 30 mpg, the car would still need gas to be $1.044/gallon to have the same fuel costs as the Honda Fit EV (running on electricity at the average US residential rate).

And imagine if that EV is actually getting its electricity super cheaply from solar panels!

As a wrap up, here’s a bullet-point comparison of some different options and possibilities:

• Honda Fit EV on $0.08/kWh electricity =  $0.0232 per mile
• Honda Fit EV on $0.12/kWh electricity =  $0.0348 per mile
• Average US consumer vehicle (based on average cost of gas on May 28, $3.727/gallon) = $0.1553 per mile (4.5 to 6.7 times more than the options above)
• 2012 Toyota Corolla, most popular car in the world last month (based on avg price of gas) = $0.12423 per mile (3.6 to 5.35 times more than the Honda Fit EV options above)

Which option would you choose?

Image: Honda