Gallons per 100 miles (UK) to Liters per km
gal/100mi (UK)
L/km
Conversion History
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Quick Reference Table (Gallons per 100 miles (UK) to Liters per km)
| Gallons per 100 miles (UK) (gal/100mi (UK)) | Liters per km (L/km) |
|---|---|
| 1.4 | 25.286156425428571428419711632876 |
| 1.7 | 20.823893526823529411639762521192 |
| 2 | 17.7003094978 |
| 2.5 | 14.16024759824 |
| 3 | 11.800206331866666666548664603348 |
| 3.5 | 10.114462570171428571580288367124 |
| 5 | 7.08012379912 |
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 Liters per km (L/km)
Liters per kilometer (L/km) is the most granular metric fuel consumption unit, expressing the volume of fuel burned for every individual kilometer driven. Because a typical passenger car consumes only 0.04–0.15 L/km, the number is inconveniently small for everyday use, and most metric markets prefer L/10km or L/100km. L/km is used in engineering calculations, telematics data streams, and as the mathematical base for converting between metric consumption and efficiency units. It is the direct reciprocal of km/L: a car using 0.07 L/km travels approximately 14.3 km per liter.
A compact car rated at 7 L/100km consumes 0.07 L/km. A large SUV at 12 L/100km uses 0.12 L/km — visible as a small daily difference that compounds significantly over tens of thousands of kilometers.
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.
Liters per km – Frequently Asked Questions
Why do engineers use L/km instead of L/100km?
L/km is the raw mathematical unit that telematics systems and engine control units log internally. It maps directly to instantaneous fuel flow divided by speed, making it ideal for real-time calculations. Multiplying by 100 to get L/100km is a display convenience for humans, not a computing necessity.
How do fleet telematics systems use L/km data to coach drivers in real time?
Modern telematics units sample fuel flow and GPS speed several times per second, computing instantaneous L/km continuously. When the value spikes — hard acceleration, excessive idling, speeding — the system triggers an in-cab alert or scores the behavior for later review. Over thousands of vehicles, coaching drivers to shave even 0.005 L/km off their average can save a fleet millions of liters per year.
What L/km does a Formula 1 car use during a race?
An F1 car burns roughly 0.35–0.45 L/km under race conditions, about five times more than a typical passenger car. FIA regulations cap total fuel at 110 kg per race, forcing teams to balance speed against consumption strategically.
Is 0.05 L/km considered fuel-efficient for a modern car?
Yes, 0.05 L/km (equivalent to 5 L/100km or ~47 US mpg) is quite efficient. Most petrol hybrids achieve this range. A non-hybrid petrol car would need to be a well-optimized compact to hit that mark consistently in mixed driving.
Why does my OBD scanner show fuel rate in L/km not L/100km?
OBD-II standardized on raw per-kilometer (or per-mile) metrics because the ECU calculates consumption at the granular level. Your dashboard or app multiplies by 100 for display. The raw L/km reading updates in real time and is more useful for diagnosing injector performance or driving behavior.