Vehicle efficiency and emissions:
- For diesel and gas powered vehicles, the Natural Resources Canada 2016 Fuel Consumption Ratings were used
- All hybrids are assumed to save 30% on fuel consumption and emissions production
- All consumption data for diesel, gas and hybrids use the 2016 year, as the average vehicle age in Ontario is 6 years old
- For electric vehicle (EV) consumption data, 2016 was an inappropriate choice as few EVs were available in 2016. Instead, energy consumption is averaged by vehicle size from 2012-2022
- EV emissions are based on charging in Ontario, where 31gC02/kwh is used for the most recent year with complete data (2020)
- Combined city/highway figures were used to determine efficiency for all vehicles
Vehicle costs
- Diesel, gas and hybrid fuel costs are the Ontario average of the most recent 3 complete months
- EV fuel cost is the Ontario mid-peak rate for the most recent 3 complete months
- Plug-in hybrid vehicles are not included in the tool, we suggest using hybrid class instead
- Costs for all vehicle’s maintenance, wear and tear are taken from the AAA 2021 Your Driving Costs Report, and translated from miles to km, and $USD to $CAD for the Canadian context
- Gas, diesel and hybrid vehicles of the same size class are assumed to have the same maintenance, wear and tear costs
- Insurance costs are generally unchanged based on usage and are thus excluded
- Licensing, registration and taxes are unchanged based on usage and are thus excluded
- Depreciation, while affected by vehicle kilometres travelled, is also affected by a range of other unchanged factors and is thus excluded
Vehicle categories
- Natural Resources Canada classifies vehicles into 13 size types. To be more user-friendly, these were reclassified into seven classes for use in our tool
- No minivans or pickup EV categories exist, so medium SUV class is used instead
- No large sedan diesel fuel economy category exists, medium sedan values are used instead
- No minivan diesel fuel economy category exists, medium SUV values are used instead
Time calculations
- To account for leave and vacation the calculator uses a base working year of 45 weeks.
- Time savings are provided in work days. A work day is assumed to be 7.5 hours