Planning to sell your car? Or do you want to purchase a second-hand car? In any case, you will notice that having the correct idea about the mileage of a car plays a big role in the transaction. A car's real performance is measured in mileage.
Hence, for both selling and buying you should know how to correctly calculate the car's mileage to estimate its value. Note that exhausting the car's fuel, filling up just one litre and measuring how far the car can drive is not a wise approach. Hence, the most efficient method to calculate the mileage of the car is the ‘tankful to tankful method' that can give you a good result with the least margin of error.
Select a particular pump and a particular dispenser before going for the fuel up. This will help you reduce the margin of error in calculations. Most dispenser nozzles that fill petrol in your vehicle have an auto-cut-off faction that stops the flow of fuel once the fuel level has reached the brim. When this happens, stop filling the fuel.
Reset the trip meter of your vehicle back to zero.
Take the old car for a drive and hit a faraway picnic spot with a family. This is not a joke; you should drive around for at least 250-300 kms before getting a refill. This may take a few days, so don't rush into burning the fuel. However, you can use this opportunity for responsible fun.
Driving superfast may seem thrilling with your newly fuelled-up car. However, have patience and drive within the speed limit. This is because at times, increasing the speed limit consumes more fuel, which could affect your estimate. Simply enjoy the ride before you get to the math.
Now after driving for a few days, head back to the same petrol pump, hit the same dispenser and fill-up your car to the brim. Make sure to note the amount of fuel you poured in this time and let the calculation begin!
The mileage of a car is how much distance it runs in one litre of fuel. To calculate the mileage of your car, divide the number of kms the car ran with the amount of fuel you filled the second time.
Mileage = Kilometres run / Amount of Fuel Used
After calculating the mileage you are ready to sell your car, or purchase a car at the right price. Remember that a well-serviced and maintained car gives more mileage than a poorly maintained car of the same model and manufacturing year.
