For many cars in the North American marketplace, both historic and current, the term “fuel efficiency” is something of a misnomer. Though we use the term oxymoronically with alarming frequency, there are certain automobiles which - despite tougher safety standards and customers who demand more creature comforts - manage to harness technology and provide consumers with greater efficiency.
By definition, efficiency is the “the ability to accomplish a job with a minimum expenditure of time and effort”. One might argue that the Lamborghini Murcielago’s ability to accelerate to 60 miles per hour in a little more than three seconds on its way 211mph proves the efficiency of its 6.5L V12 engine. Opponents point to the Lamborghini’s ability to travel just 8 city miles for every gallon of gasoline as proof that the LP640 Lambo isn’t efficient at all.
Arguments against the economical way with which these cars traverse our landscapes are weak indeed. The accounts found herein showcase Japanese automakers but include a healthy dollop of domestics and even a few interlopers from Europe and Korea. Pay special attention to a couple fastidious facts: These are not real-world fuel economy numbers. FuelEconomy.gov keeps a database of all Environmental Protection Agency test results - the statistics below are born there. Also, not every m-p-g is created equal. Toyota’s dominant Prius achieves a city figure of 51 miles per gallon. That’s equivalent to over 61 imperial miles per gallon, or about 4.6 litres per 100 kilometres for Canadians.
Altogether, eight distinct hybrids manifest themselves as highly economical vehicles in the distinct tallies for city, highway, and combined mpg. That number jumps to ten if you include Mercury’s twins of the Fusion and Escape. One three-cylinder car appears in the top five of two sections. Diesel fuel is required in one car which happens to be visible in each category. There’s only one V6 engine in the whole fleet. General Motors is sent home with a single trophy. Chrysler is invisible, which is to say, missing in action. Finally, draw your attention to this dollar figure: $22,501. That’s the average MSRP of the cars described in the Top 10 lists below.
BEST FUEL EFFICIENCY IN THE CITY
#1 - Toyota Prius: 51mpg
#2 - Ford Fusion Hybrid: 41mpg
T3 - Honda Insight & Honda Civic Hybrid: 40mpg
#5 - Nissan Altima Hybrid: 35mpg
#6 - Ford Escape Hybrid (front-wheel drive): 34mpg
T7 - smart fortwo & Toyota Camry Hybrid: 33mpg
#9 - Lexus RX450h (front-wheel drive): 32mpg
#10- Volkswagen Jetta TDI (manual transmission): 30mpg
BEST FUEL EFFICIENCY ON THE HIGHWAY
#1- Toyota Prius: 48mpg
#2- Honda Civic Hybrid: 45mpg
#3- Honda Insight: 43mpg
T4- smart fortwo & Volkswagen Jetta TDI (manual): 41mpg
T6- Chevrolet Cobalt XFE & Mini Cooper (manual): 37mpg
T8- Ford Fusion Hybrid, Toyota Yaris (manual) and Kia Rio (2.0L auto): 36mpg
BEST COMBINED FUEL EFFICIENCY
#1- Toyota Prius: 50mpg
#2- Honda Civic Hybrid: 42mpg
#3- Honda Insight: 41mpg
#4- Ford Fusion Hybrid: 39mpg
#5- smart fortwo: 36mpg
T6- Toyota Camry Hybrid, Nissan Altima Hybrid & Volkswagen Jetta TDI (manual): 34mpg
T9- Ford Escape Hybrid (front-wheel drive) & Toyota Yaris (manual): 32mpg
Expect to reach the EPA’s city mpg ratings for your overall driving if you can resist wide open throttle at each stoplight and every on-ramp. Strive to reach the EPA’s combined figure with light-throttle driving and you just might nail it. And pay special attention to certain vehicles which benefit from an engine-off mode at stoplights and at low speeds. How will you know which cars possess this wonderful capability? If any vehicle posts better EPA city ratings than they can on the highway, you’ll know the car is built for city commuting.
Written by Timothy Cain