Government highlights big-car fuel bills

THE federal government has highlighted the high fuel costs and carbon emissions of six-cylinder cars, with the transport minister Anthony Albanese this week emphasising the benefits of trading-in a big six for a medium-sized four-cylinder.

In heralding the addition of a fuel cost calculator to the government’s Green Vehicle Guide, Mr Albanese released a list of the biggest-selling cars and their respective annual fuel cost and CO2 emissions.

This showed the Holden Commodore as racking up a petrol bill of $2430 and emitting 3.8 tonnes of CO2 per annum, with the Ford Falcon costing $2272 in fuel and releasing 3.6 tonnes of CO2.

By contrast, Australia’s current top seller, the Toyota Corolla, was listed as costing $1642 in petrol and emitting 2.6 tonnes, while the smaller Yaris was even cheaper and greener with a petrol bill of $1350 and carbon emissions of 2.1 tonnes. The other top-five seller, the Mazda3, came in with $1845 in fuel and 2.9 tonnes of CO2.

“Empowering consumers with this type of information will also make it easier for them to choose and live a ‘greener’ lifestyle,” said Mr Albanese. “More than ever, it’s important to consider not only the car’s ticket price but also its ongoing running and environmental costs.

“For example, if you were to trade-in your six-cylinder car for a mid-size four-cylinder you could cut your annual fuel bill by up to a third and reduce your carbon emissions by up to a third as well.” The cheapest car to run was listed as the Toyota Prius hybrid – classified as a medium car by the federal government – with $990 in fuel and 1.6 tonnes of CO2 for the year.

The calculations assume an average petrol price of $1.50 per litre and an annual distance travelled of 15,000km.

Annual running costs and carbon emissions:

Top Five Sellers

Make	Model	Star Rating	Annual Fuel Cost	Annual CO2 (tonnes)
Toyota	Corolla	4.5 stars	$1642	2.6
Holden	Commodore	3 stars	$2430	3.8
Mazda	3	3.5 stars	$1845	2.9
Ford	Falcon	3 stars	$2272	3.6
Toyota	Yaris	4 stars	$1350	2.1

Five Star Cars

Make	Model	Star Rating	Annual Fuel Cost	Annual CO2 (tonnes)
Toyota	Prius	5 stars	$990	1.6
Fiat	500	5 stars	$1125	1.8
Fiat	Punto	5 stars	$1282	2.0
Citroen	C3	5 stars	$1395	2.2
Fiat	Ritmo	5 stars	$1462	2.3

Hybrids

Make	Model	Star Rating	Annual Fuel Cost	Annual CO2 (tonnes)
Toyota	Prius	5 stars	$990	1.6
Honda	Civic	4.5 stars	$1035	1.6