The case for the V8

Fuel efficiency is a large selling point for lots of vehicles. Nobody likes draining the bank account as they fill up the tank. Thus, getting an energy sipping car is always a good idea. This has been a major concern of the auto industry for a long time, and the best-selling automobiles on the market are all small sedans that get great mileage with 4- and some 6-cylinder engines. That said, there are some automobiles that are much better off with an 8-cylinder engine, and would actually get better gas mileage.

Easy science

Gas mileage, or fuel efficiency, is a principle of physics known as mechanical efficiency. It is relatively simple. Mechanical efficiency is the ratio of energy used versus the amount of work done. The more energy is used, the lesser the efficiency. The equation is simple:

Efficiency = Input/Output

In other words, a small engine that has to do more work than a larger engine for the exact same task can be a lesser amount of mechanically efficient. Thus, it will not perform also. Thus, it also will not get the optimal gas mileage.

Bigger engines can perform far better

Motors with a V-8 configuration put out more horsepower than 4-, 5-, or 6-cylinder counterparts. However, many of the automobiles that come with an 8-cylinder standard are already large. The Chevy Silverado 1500 has a V8 and gets 15 mpg. The Chevrolet Corvette Coupe has the same size motor, a 6.2 L V-8. However, the mileage is 26 mpg for a Corvette. The reason why is, the Corvette has less weight to pull.

{Less efforts is additionally less tension|Efforts also is tension|A lesser amount of effort means simpler efforts|Easier signifies less tense efforts|Less strain equals more productivity

In a larger car, say a minivan or mid size SUV, if the car is pulling the driver and a full passenger and gear load, the gas mileage will actually drop drastically with the smaller, less-powerful engine. This benefit is realized by cars smaller than a full size, as the engine will not have to work as hard to pull the load and therefore be more efficient. The engine will not efforts as hard, and perform much better. It will also last longer due to less damage.

More on this topic

Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mechanical_advantage