Gallons per 100 miles (UK) to Kilometer per liter
gal/100mi (UK)
km/L
Conversion History
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Quick Reference Table (Gallons per 100 miles (UK) to Kilometer per liter)
| Gallons per 100 miles (UK) (gal/100mi (UK)) | Kilometer per liter (km/L) |
|---|---|
| 1.4 | 0.03954733108406969541 |
| 1.7 | 0.04802175917351320157 |
| 2 | 0.05649618726295670773 |
| 2.5 | 0.07062023407869588467 |
| 3 | 0.0847442808944350616 |
| 3.5 | 0.09886832771017423853 |
| 5 | 0.14124046815739176933 |
About Gallons per 100 miles (UK) (gal/100mi (UK))
Gallons per 100 miles (imperial) is the British consumption-oriented counterpart to the metric L/100km standard, expressing how many imperial gallons a vehicle burns over 100 miles. It is numerically distinct from its US equivalent because the imperial gallon (4.546 L) is larger than the US gallon (3.785 L), so UK gal/100mi values are roughly 20% lower than US gal/100mi for identical fuel consumption. The unit is used in UK engineering and fleet management contexts where consumption rather than efficiency framing is preferred, and in academic analysis of British vehicle fuel-use data.
A 50 UK mpg car consumes 2 gal/100mi (imperial). A typical British family SUV at 35 UK mpg uses about 2.86 gal/100mi (imperial).
About Kilometer per liter (km/L)
Kilometers per liter (km/L) is a fuel efficiency unit — higher is better — expressing how far a vehicle travels on each liter of fuel. It is the preferred fuel economy metric in Japan, India, Indonesia, and parts of Latin America. A typical economy car achieves 12–17 km/L; a petrol hybrid may exceed 20 km/L. The unit is the direct reciprocal of L/km and converts to L/100km by dividing 100 by the km/L value. Japanese fuel economy certificates (JC08 and WLTC test cycles) publish efficiency in km/L, making it the reference unit for vehicle purchasing decisions in Japan.
A Honda Fit achieves approximately 17 km/L on the Japanese WLTC cycle. A Toyota Prius hybrid reaches around 22 km/L under the same conditions.
Gallons per 100 miles (UK) – Frequently Asked Questions
Why would anyone use imperial gallons per 100 miles?
Fleet managers and logistics companies in the UK sometimes prefer this consumption-based metric because it scales linearly with cost. If fuel costs £5.50 per imperial gallon, a vehicle using 3 gal/100mi costs exactly £16.50 per 100 miles — much easier to budget than working backwards from mpg.
How does UK gal/100mi compare to US gal/100mi for the same car?
UK gal/100mi values are about 17% lower than US gal/100mi because the imperial gallon is larger. A car consuming 4 US gal/100mi uses only about 3.33 UK gal/100mi. Same fuel burned, but fewer of the bigger gallons needed to measure it.
How do UK fleet operators use gal/100mi to set carbon budgets per vehicle?
Burning one imperial gallon of diesel produces about 10.2 kg of CO₂. Multiplying gal/100mi by that emission factor gives a direct kg-CO₂-per-100-miles figure for each vehicle. Fleet managers set thresholds — say 25 kg CO₂/100mi — and flag any vehicle exceeding it for maintenance or driver retraining. The linear relationship makes gal/100mi far better than mpg for carbon accounting, where small absolute savings matter.
What is a good UK gal/100mi for a family car?
A modern family hatchback should achieve around 1.8–2.3 UK gal/100mi (43–56 UK mpg). Anything under 2 gal/100mi is considered very efficient. SUVs typically sit at 2.5–3.5 gal/100mi, and performance cars can exceed 4 gal/100mi.
Is this unit used on any official UK documentation?
Not on consumer-facing documents. UK vehicle registration (V5C) and type-approval certificates show L/100km and CO₂ g/km. Gal/100mi (imperial) lives mainly in fleet management software, academic transport research, and engineering reports where linear consumption comparisons matter more than the traditional mpg framing.
Kilometer per liter – Frequently Asked Questions
Why does India use km/L instead of L/100km?
India adopted km/L because it intuitively answers "how far can I go on one liter?" — a question that resonates strongly in a price-sensitive market where drivers often buy fuel in specific liter amounts rather than filling up. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) publishes official star ratings in km/L.
How does India's fuel subsidy system interact with km/L ratings on car stickers?
India historically subsidised petrol and diesel prices, keeping pump costs artificially low and weakening the incentive to buy fuel-efficient cars. As subsidies have been rolled back since 2014, the BEE star rating in km/L has become a genuine purchasing factor. A one-star jump (roughly 3–4 km/L better) now translates to noticeable monthly savings, pushing buyers toward smaller engines, hybrids, and CNG vehicles.
What km/L does a 125cc motorcycle get in city traffic?
A typical 125cc commuter motorcycle in India or Southeast Asia achieves 40–60 km/L in city riding, far exceeding any passenger car. The Honda CB Shine, one of India's best-sellers, claims about 55 km/L — a major reason two-wheelers dominate Asian commuting.
Why do Japanese cars seem to have much better km/L than European cars?
Part of it is real — Japanese kei cars are lighter and smaller. But the old JC08 test cycle was also more lenient than European WLTP, inflating numbers by 10–20%. Japan has since adopted WLTC testing, narrowing the gap and giving more realistic km/L figures.
Is 20 km/L realistic for a non-hybrid petrol car?
It is achievable but only for small, lightweight cars under ideal highway conditions. In real-world mixed driving, most non-hybrid petrol cars top out around 15–17 km/L. Hitting 20 km/L consistently without hybrid assistance requires something like a sub-1000 kg car with a 1.0L engine.