Vehicle Fuel Economy

Overview

Either `make` or `model` is required. `make` is matched after dropping punctuation and case, with Chevy, VW and Mercedes accepted; `model` matches the start or any part of the EPA's full model name or base model, so `model=Camry` returns Camry, Camry Hybrid LE and Camry AWD LE/SE. A model without a make searches every make that builds it. `year` and `fuelType` narrow the result, and results are ordered newest model year first, then by model name; `limit` (default 20, at most 50) and `page` walk through them.

The data is fueleconomy.gov's vehicles file, rebuilt weekly, joined to its emissions file for the smog rating (the federal rating where a vehicle has both a federal and a California one). Each row is one EPA test configuration: a model year, engine, transmission and drive. `mpg` is the EPA's adjusted label value on the primary fuel, in MPGe for electric vehicles; plug-in hybrids show gasoline MPG in `mpg` and MPGe on electricity in `mpgAlternateFuel`, with their charge-depleting electric range in `electric.rangeMiles`.

`powertrain` is derived from the EPA's alternative fuel type and fuel: electric, plugin_hybrid, hybrid, hydrogen, flex_fuel, cng, diesel or gasoline. Values the EPA leaves blank or zero are null. No match returns 404. On the Free plan kWh per 100 miles, charge times, the onboard charger, annual fuel cost, five-year savings, CO2 and scores are null.

Live Test Vehicle Fuel Economy Skill →

The tool

Once your client is connected to the VerveKit server, this appears in its tool list as VehicleFuelEconomy. It is read-only and open-world — it fetches and never mutates anything on your side — so most clients call it without asking you to confirm.

{
  "name": "VehicleFuelEconomy",
  "arguments": {}
}

Connecting

One server URL covers every skill in the catalog, including this one. Authorization is OAuth: the client opens a browser once, and there is no key to paste into a config file.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "vervekit": {
      "url": "https://api.vervekit.com/v1/mcp"
    }
  }
}

https://api.vervekit.com/v1/mcp

Per-client setup — Claude, Cursor, VS Code, ChatGPT — is on the MCP setup page.

Arguments

These are the properties on the tool's inputSchema, so a well-behaved client validates them before the call is made. Premium arguments are accepted on every plan but only take effect on plans that include them.

What the model gets back

The result carries a structuredContent object matching the tool's declared outputSchema, so a client reads fields without parsing prose. status is "ok" and error is null on success; a null field means the value was not available for that input, not that the call failed.

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{
  "status": "ok",
  "error": null,
  "data": {
    "count": 5,
    "page": 1,
    "pages": 3,
    "returned": 2,
    "vehicles": [
      {
        "epaId": 47908,
        "year": 2024,
        "make": "Tesla",
        "model": "Model 3 Long Range AWD",
        "baseModel": "Model 3",
        "vehicleClass": "Midsize Cars",
        "powertrain": "electric",
        "fuelType": "Electricity",
        "drive": "All-Wheel Drive",
        "transmission": "Automatic (A1)",
        "engine": {
          "cylinders": null,
          "displacementL": null,
          "turbocharged": false,
          "supercharged": false,
          "description": null,
          "electricMotor": "84 and 191 kW ACPM 3-Phase"
        },
        "startStop": false,
        "mpg": {
          "unit": "MPGe",
          "city": 137,
          "highway": 124,
          "combined": 130
        },
        "mpgAlternateFuel": null,
        "electric": {
          "rangeMiles": 342,
          "rangeCityMiles": 357,
          "rangeHighwayMiles": 323,
          "rangeKm": 550,
          "kwhPer100Miles": {
            "city": 24.7,
            "highway": 27.2,
            "combined": 25.8
          },
          "chargeTime240vHours": 9.4,
          "chargeTime120vHours": null,
          "onboardCharger": null
        },
        "annualFuelCostUsd": 600,
        "fiveYearSavingsUsd": 8000,
        "co2GramsPerMile": 0,
        "scores": {
          "fuelEconomy": 10,
          "greenhouseGas": 10,
          "smog": 10
        },
        "gasGuzzler": false
      },
      {
        "epaId": 48473,
        "year": 2024,
        "make": "Tesla",
        "model": "Model 3 Long Range AWD-E",
        "baseModel": "Model 3",
        "vehicleClass": "Midsize Cars",
        "powertrain": "electric",
        "fuelType": "Electricity",
        "drive": "All-Wheel Drive",
        "transmission": "Automatic (A1)",
        "engine": {
          "cylinders": null,
          "displacementL": null,
          "turbocharged": false,
          "supercharged": false,
          "description": null,
          "electricMotor": "191 kW ACPM 3-Phase"
        },
        "startStop": false,
        "mpg": {
          "unit": "MPGe",
          "city": 133,
          "highway": 122,
          "combined": 128
        },
        "mpgAlternateFuel": null,
        "electric": {
          "rangeMiles": 341,
          "rangeCityMiles": 355,
          "rangeHighwayMiles": 324,
          "rangeKm": 549,
          "kwhPer100Miles": {
            "city": 25.3,
            "highway": 27.7,
            "combined": 26.4
          },
          "chargeTime240vHours": 10,
          "chargeTime120vHours": null,
          "onboardCharger": null
        },
        "annualFuelCostUsd": 600,
        "fiveYearSavingsUsd": 8000,
        "co2GramsPerMile": 0,
        "scores": {
          "fuelEconomy": 10,
          "greenhouseGas": 10,
          "smog": 10
        },
        "gasGuzzler": false
      }
    ]
  }
}

Response fields

Paths are relative to data. Premium fields are absent rather than zeroed on plans that do not include them, so check for presence instead of comparing to 0.

Failure modes

Errors come back as tool errors carrying a sentence the model can act on, not a bare status code. Error handling covers the full list.

A call costs 1 credit each time the tool actually runs; a model that reasons about the tool without calling it costs nothing.

Use cases

Car Shopping Sites

Show EPA MPG, EV range and running costs beside each listing and let buyers compare trims.

Fleet Electrification

Compare the annual fuel cost and CO2 of current vehicles against electric replacements.

Insurance and Finance

Add powertrain, fuel type and efficiency to vehicle records for pricing and green-loan eligibility.

Sustainability Reporting

Estimate tailpipe CO2 per mile for company cars and mileage claims.

Other ways to use Vehicle Fuel Economy

Set up Vehicle Fuel Economy on VerveKit, or reach the same source a different way. Your VerveKit account and credits work on all of them — one key, one balance.

Related

More in Transportation: