4. If I want good mpg in a new car, which models should I consider — and which should I avoid?



Here is a listing of the best and worst 2007 vehicles (less in a few cases) for mpg in every class of vehicle as rated by the Environmental Protection Agency. A price limit of $50,000 was set to eliminate luxury vehicles such as Lamborghinis and Ferraris, which often cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and had by far the worst mpg ratings.



Manufacturer Model *Transmission City MPG Highway MPG **Gas Type Price



Two Seaters

Best

Mazda MX 5 M 25 30 P $21,180

Lotus Elise M 24 30 R $47,195

Pontiac Solstice M 22 31 P $27,115

Saturn Sky M 22 31 P $29,025

BMW Z4 3.0i A 21 30 P $37,175

Worst

BMW Z4 M Coupe M(M6) 16 24 P $41,175

Chrysler Crossfire Coupe M(M6) 17 25 P $30,435

Mercedes-Benz SLK350 M(M6) 18 25 P $48,175

Nissan 350Z Roadster A(S5) 19 25 P $37,175

Honda S2000 M(M6) 20 26 P $34,845



Minicompact Cars

Best

Mini Mini Cooper S M(M6) 29 36 P $22,600

Volkswagen New Beetle Convertible M(M5) 22 30 R $22,880

Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder A(S5) 18 26 P $29,794

Mini Cooper M(M6) 32 40 P $18,700

Mini Cooper S Convertible M(M6) 24 31 P $26,050

Worst

There was not enough disparity among the mpg ratings in this class to compile a list of the worst.



Subcompact

Best

Toyota Yaris M 34 40 R $12,645

Honda Civic DX Coupe A 30 40 R $16,205

Chevrolet Aveo M 30 39 R $12,575

Chevrolet Cobalt M 25 34 R $13,790

Pontiac G5/Pursuit M 25 34 R $15,390

Worst

Ford Mustang M(M6) 15 21 P $42,975

Saab 9-3 Convertible A(S6) 17 28 R $43,845

Mazda RX-8 M(M6) 18 24 P $27,030

Subaru Impreza AWD M(M6) 19 25 P $34,120

Infiniti G35 Coupe A(S5) 18 25 P $34,165



Compact

Best

Honda Civic Hybrid A 49 51 R $23,195

Toyota Corolla M 32 41 R $14,925

Hyundai Accent M 32 35 R $13,245

Kia Rio A 29 38 R $11,350

Ford Focus M 27 37 R $14,660

Worst

Mercedes-Benz CLS550 A(L7) 15 22 P $49,975

Volvo S60 R AWD A(S6) 17 25 P $33,430

Audi A4 Quattro M(M6) 17 27 P $37,215

Mercedes-Benz C350 4MATIC A(L5) 19 24 P $41,175

Mercedes-Benz C230 M(M6) 19 25 P $30,425



Midsize Cars

Best

Toyota Prius Hybrid A 60 51 R $22,795

Nissan Altima Hybrid A 42 36 A $25,615

Toyota Camry Hybrid A 40 38 R $26,820

Nissan Sentra A 29 36 A $16,175

Nissan Versa M 30 34 M $13,175

Worst

Volvo S80 AWD A(S6) 17 25 P $48,045

Cadillac CTS M(M6) 17 26 R $33,530

Jaguar X-Type Sport BrakeA(L5) 18 24 P $34,995

Cadillac CTS M(M6) 17 27 R $30,670

Lincoln-Mercuy MKZ AWD A(L6) 18 26 R $31,915



Large Cars

Best

Hyundai Sonata M 24 34 R $17,995

Toyota Avalon A 24 33 R $27,295

Chevrolet Impala A 21 31 R $21,700

Ford Five Hundred A 21 29 R $23,785

Lincoln-Mercury Montego A 21 29 R $24,585

Worst

Chrysler 300/SRT-8 A(L5) 14 20 P $43,383

Dodge Charger A(L5) 14 20 P $36,720

Ford Crown Victoria A(L4) 17 25 R $25,445

Lincoln-Mercury Grand Marquis A(L4) 17 25 R $25,735

Lincoln-Mercury Town Car A(L4) 17 25 R $43,045



Small Station Wagons

Best

Honda Fit Hatchback M 33 38 R $14,445

Pontiac Vibe M 30 36 R $17,345

Toyota Matrix A 29 34 R $16,030

Audi A3 A 25 32 P $27,595

Suzuki SX4 A 26 33 R $16,724

Worst

Saab 9-3 Sportcombi A(S6) 17 28 R $34,445

Audi A4 Avant Quattro M(M6) 17 27 P $38,215

Volvo V50 AWD M(M6) 19 27 P $30,885

BMW 328XI Sport Wagon M(M6) 19 28 P $36,875

BMW 328XI Sport Wagon A(S6) 20 27 P $25,120



Midsize Station Wagons

Best

Volkswagen Passat Wagon A 23 31 P $26,085

Subaru Legacy Wagon A 23 30 R $25,920

Volvo V70 FWD M(M5) 22 29 P $30,740

Kia Rondo A 21 29 R $16,995

Mazda Mazda 5 Wagon M 22 27 R $18,330

Worst

Volvo V70 R AWD M(M6) 18 24 P $41,635

Volkswagen Passat Wagon 4Motion A(S6) 18 26 P $33,960

Audi A6 Avant Quattro A(S6) 19 27 P $48,775

Subaru Legacy Wagon AWD A(S5) 19 25 P $31,520

Mazda 6 Sport Wagon A(S6) 20 27 R $24,785



Standard Pickups 2-Wheel Drive

Best

Mazda B2300 M 24 29 R $16,170

Toyota Tacoma M 23 28 R $14,825

Nissan Frontier M 22 25 R $16,755

Worst

Lincoln Mark LT A(L4) 14 18 R $39,050

Nissan Titan 2WD A(L5) 14 18 R $27,295

Dodge Ram 1500 Pickup 2WD M(M6) 14 19 R $26,000

Toyota Toyota Tundra 2WD A(S5) 15 18 R $24,075



Standard Pickups 4-Wheel DrivE

Best

Toyota Tacoma M 19 23 R $18,770

Chevrolet Colorado A 16 23 R $24,495

GMC Canyon A 16 22 R $24,625

Nissan Frontier M 17 21 R $24,205

Isuzu I-370 Crew Cab A(L4) 16 22 R $28,043

Worst

Dodge Ram 1500 4WD A(L5) 14 18 R 26760

Nissan Titan 4WD A(L5) 14 18 R 30495

Ford F150 4WD A(L4) 14 18 R 30750

Lincoln Mark LT A(L4) 14 18 R 42150



Cargo Vans

Best

Chevrolet G1500/2500 A 15 20 R $23,080

GMC G1500/2500 Savana A 15 20 R $23,080

Worst

GMC G15/25 Savana 2WD Cargo Conversion A(L4) 14 18 R $27,795

Chevrolet H1500 Van Conv AWD A(L4) 14 18 R $27,795



Passenger Vans

Best

Chevrolet G1500/2500 Express A 14 18 R $26,660

GMC G1500/2500 Savana Pass A 14 18 R $26,660

Worst

Too few vans in this class to compile a list of worst mpg.



Minivans

Best

Dodge Caravan A 20 26 R $19,770

Toyota Sienna A 19 26 R $24,800

Chrysler Voyager A 19 26 R $22,410

Honda Odyssey A 19 26 R $31,690

Chevrolet Uplander A 18 25 R $20,970

Saturn Relay A 18 25 R $22,335

Worst

Ford Freestar Cargo Van FWD A(L4) 17 23 R $20,480

Mercury Monterey Wagon FWD A(L4) 17 23 R $29,350

Toyota Sienna 4WD A(L5) 18 23 R $29,940

Kia Sedona A(L5) 18 25 R $21,195

Chevrolet Uuplander FWD A(L4) 18 25 R $20,970



SUV 2-Wheel Drive

Best

Ford Escape Hybrid A 36 31 R $26,320

Lexus RX 400 Hybrid A 32 27 P $41,895

Toyota Highlander Hybrid A 32 27 R $33,675

Saturn Vue Hybrid A 27 32 R $23,495

Toyota RAV4 2WD A(L4) 24 30 R $21,595

Worst

Nissan Armada 2WD A(L5) 13 19 R $35,695

Lincoln Navigator 2WD A(L6) 13 18 R $46,750

Chrysler Aspen 2WD A(L5) 14 19 R $34,555

Dodge Durango 2WD A(L5) 14 19 R $35,445

Ford Expedition 2WD A(L6) 14 20 R $30,145



SUV 4-Wheel DrivE

Best

Ford Escape Hybrid A 32 29 $27,925

Mercury Mariner Hybrid A 32 29 $28,615

Lexs RX 400 Hybrid A 31 27 $43,295

Toyota Highlander Hybrid A 31 27 $35,075

Jeep Patriot M 25 29 $16,860

Worst

Nissan Armada 4WD A(L5) 13 18 R $38,495

Chevrolet Trailblazer AWD A(L4) 14 17 P $34,355

Chrysler Aspen 4WD A(L5) 14 18 R $34,555

Dodge Durango 4WD A(L5) 14 18 R $30,230

GMC K1500 Yukon Denali AWD A(L6) 13 19 P $48,680



*A: Automatic. M: Manual

**Recommended gasoline type for best engine performance. P: premium. R: regular



All prices are taken from Kelly’s Blue Book’s official Web site, and all prices are listed by the manufacturer suggested retail price (MSRP), which is often a couple of thousand dollars higher than the actual retail. Check kbb.com or your local dealer for local prices.

The EPA’s mpg estimates for 2007 are not precise. The EPA is developing a new mpg estimate for future years, which will more accurately reflect the mpg people can expect in real-life driving. The newer estimates are usually lower by a few mpgs for both highway and city ratings, but are significantly lower in some cases, particularly with the top-ranking Hybrids. (Example: Toyota Prius Hybrid: Old City - 60, New City - 48)

To find the new ranking for any vehicle, search for it at fueleconomy.gov/feg/ratings2008.shtml.

Also, many of the least fuel efficient models listed by the EPA were not found on kbb.com. For example, many of the worst trucks listed are at 14/18 for city/highway mpg, but the EPA also listed those same models as having versions that ranked at 9/13 for city, highway mpg. This is true for other automobile types as well. The cars listed here had to be found in both sources in order to be included. All cars are the simplest models and have only standard features.



Compiled by

GABRIEL KHOULI

gabe.khouli@heraldbulletin.com