Kilometers Per Liter (km/L) Fuel Economy Calculator

How to Calculate Fuel Economy in Kilometers per Liter (km/L)

Calculating fuel economy in kilometers per liter (km/L) is an essential skill for vehicle owners, especially in countries that use the metric system. It helps you understand your vehicle's efficiency and can guide decisions about maintenance and future vehicle purchases.

What is the Formula?

The basic formula for calculating fuel economy in km/L is:

\[ km/L = \frac{Distance Traveled (km)}{Fuel Consumed (L)} \]

Where:

• km/L is Kilometers per Liter
• Distance Traveled is in kilometers
• Fuel Consumed is in liters

If you want to calculate the cost per kilometer, the formula is:

\[ Cost Per Kilometer = \frac{Fuel Cost per Liter}{km/L} \]

What are the calculation steps?

1. Record your odometer reading or trip distance at the start of your journey.
2. Fill up your fuel tank completely.
3. Drive normally until your tank is nearly empty.
4. Fill up your tank again, noting how many liters it takes to fill.
5. Record your new odometer reading or trip distance.
6. Calculate the distance traveled by subtracting the initial reading from the final reading.
7. Divide the distance traveled by the amount of fuel used to get your km/L.

Example Calculation

Let's say you drove 500 kilometers and used 40 liters of fuel. The calculation would be:

\[ km/L = \frac{500 km}{40 L} = 12.5 km/L \]

If fuel costs $1.50 per liter, your cost per kilometer would be:

\[ Cost Per Kilometer = \frac{$1.50 per liter}{12.5 km/L} = $0.12 per kilometer \]

Diagram of Fuel Economy Calculation

The following diagram illustrates the concept of fuel economy calculation in km/L:

This diagram shows the relationship between distance traveled and fuel consumed. The height of each bar represents the quantity, and the ratio between them gives us the kilometers per liter (km/L).