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smart fortwo, MINI, Yaris – MY 2009 Fuel Economy Leaders

The Environmental Protection Agency has just published the 2009 Fuel Economy Guide which includes large variety of fuel-related figures, starting with taxes or fueling options and ending with tips to drive economically or fuel economy leaders.One of the most important chapters of the new report is the model year 2009 fuel economy leaders which mentions the cars with the lowest fuel consumption in all vehicle categories.The two-seater class is leaded by smart fortwo (automatic transmission) with an average consumption of 33 mpg in city mode, followed by Pontiac Solstice (manual gearbox) with 19 mpg. MINI Cooper dominates the minicompact class with both manual and automatic transmissions, providing an average fuel consumption of 28 and 25 mpg respectively.Because we're sure you'd want to see the most fuel-efficient SUV, Ford Escape Hybrid FWD (equipped with automatic transmission) leads the class with an average fuel consumption of 34 and 31 mpg in city and highway modes respectively.Have a look at the following stats showing the most popular classes and their fuel economy leaders (all figures provided by EPA):COMPACT CARS
Honda Civic Hybrid – automatic
Volkswagen Jetta (diesel) – manual

MIDSIZE CARS

Toyota Prius Hybrid – automatic
Nissan Versa – manual

LARGE CARS

Hyundai Sonata – automatic
Honda Accord 4-door Sedan – manual

SMALL PICKUP TRUCKS

Ford Ranger Pickup 2WD – manual
Mazda B2300 2WD – manual
Toyota Tacoma 2WD – automatic

SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES

Ford Escape Hybrid FWD – automatic
Mazda Tribute Hybrid 2WD – automatic
Mercury Mariner Hybrid FWD – automatic
Jeep Compass 2WD – manual
Jeep Patriot 2WD – manual











The EPA study shows that hybrid-electric vehicles will become more popular in the near future, providing better functionality than the standard electric cars which obviously require an external source of electricity (braking and gasoline provide all the energy the vehicle needs to work properly). “Annual fuel cost is estimated assuming 15,000 miles of travel each year (55% city and 45% highway) and a fuel cost of $4.10 per gallon for regular unleaded gasoline or $4.30 per gallon for premium gasoline,” EPA explained in the research.

The ethanol flexible fuel vehicles, on the other hand, provide almost the same annual fuel cost but due to the different price of ethanol in every country, EPA's figures could easily vary by location.

“Annual fuel cost is estimated assuming 15,000 miles of travel each year (55% city and 45% highway) and an average fuel cost of $3.55 per gallon for E85, $4.10 per gallon for regular unleaded gasoline, and $4.30 per gallon for premium unleaded gasoline.”

For more information about EPA's study, check out the PDF file attached to the article (Acrobat Reader or any other PDF reader will be required).
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 Download: EPA's research (PDF)

About the author: Bogdan Popa
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Bogdan keeps an eye on how technology is taking over the car world. His long-term goals are buying an 18-wheeler because he needs more space for his kid’s toys, and convincing Google and Apple that Android Auto and CarPlay deserve at least as much attention as their phones.
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