Mercedes-Benz responds after YouTuber Sourav Joshi’s viral E20 mileage drop claim

3 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Jul 13, 2026 01:04 PM IST

YouTuber Sourav Joshi claimed that ethanol-blended fuel had caused a dramatic drop in his luxury SUV's fuel efficiency

Mercedes-Benz India on July 12 released a clarification that all its BS VI petrol vehicles are fully compatible with E20 petrol. The clarification comes after popular YouTuber Sourav Joshi claimed that ethanol-blended fuel had caused a dramatic drop in his luxury SUV’s fuel efficiency.

Without referring to Joshi directly, Mercedes-Benz India stated that its BS VI petrol vehicles are designed and certified to operate on E20 fuel.

“At Mercedes-Benz, customer safety, vehicle reliability and performance are of paramount importance to us. All Mercedes-Benz petrol BS VI vehicles are materially compatible with E20 fuel and certified accordingly by relevant authorities,” the company said.

“We are happy to support customers with any technical queries. Mercedes-Benz remains committed to sustainable mobility,” the statement added.

Customer Advisory pic.twitter.com/RxuTYl6Phz

— Mercedes-Benz India (@MercedesBenzInd) July 12, 2026

What did Sourav Joshi claim?

Joshi, one of India’s most-followed vloggers, uploaded a video claiming that the mileage of his Mercedes-Benz SUV had declined sharply within two days. In the viral video, Joshi said the vehicle’s fuel efficiency had dropped from 17 kmpl to 9 kmpl, then to 5 kmpl over 48 hours.

“Yesterday I showed you our car’s mileage had gone from 17 straight down to 9. And do you know what it has become today? Today it has reached five… look at this, it’s showing a mileage of five,” he said.

Joshi attributed the decline to ethanol-blended petrol sold at fuel stations. “This is what has happened because of ethanol,” he said.

Joshi further claimed that a full tank of petrol that previously had an estimated driving range of around 800 km now shows a range of only about 480 km after refuelling. He also expressed concerns that continued use of ethanol-blended fuel could damage the vehicle’s petrol engine.

“I don’t know when this car will break down… Nowadays I’m so scared of refilling petrol,” he said.

“Hamari gaadi ki mileage 17 se seedhe 9 ki. Aur aaj 5 ki ho gayi”

Vlogger Saurabh Joshi claims his car mileage has dropped by less than half. https://t.co/9tJBmzuu2F pic.twitter.com/Pmu3VaaDlv

— Piyush Rai (@Benarasiyaa) July 12, 2026

Joshi added that he also owns an electric Mercedes G-Class, which he said frees him from concerns related to ethanol-blended fuel.