Gas Mileage

It’s easy to get sidetracked by the marketing blitz. There are plenty of fuel efficient cars that are neither hybrids nor new. Looking to the conventional used car market for your next vehicle purchase might be a prudent financial move. With the lack of depreciation in many hybrid models, the attractiveness of an older Honda […]

As of Sunday morning, I am now one of the iPhone borg … and I’m in search of gas mileage applications. GigaOM’s Earth2Tech jumped right on the topic on Friday, with a quick rundown on 5 iPhone Apps to Help Save Gas. I didn’t catch the GigaOM post until late on Monday, when I […]

When you look at the historical chart of hybrid gas mileage, you just have to wonder … when are the auto manufacturers going to take things to the next level? The Honda Insight, the earliest hybrid, was rated at 70 miles per gallon on the highway. Granted it was a wee little two seater with […]

I drive a lot of cars in the valiant quest for better gas mileage. But up until last week, I didn’t pay close enough attention to the way I drove the land yacht parked in our driveway … the one with 130000 miles on the clock and the parking lot dings to prove it.
That all […]

Of all the cars we’ve tested this past spring, the Volkswagen EOS convertible is at the front of the pack, largely due to one big thing … it’s drop top coolness. Most folks would be hard-pressed to identify an EOS … it zips through life with a variation of the Romulan cloak of invisibility … […]

After spending a week reviewing a Ford Focus, I get it.
The Microsoft Sync audio system, trendy design touches, and some of the best gas mileage results found in a domestically manufacturer conventional vehicle make this little critter a winner. It’s easy to see why Focus sales increased a whopping 88% year-over-year for the month of […]

Staycation: it’s new buzzword being pressed by the media. “We can’t afford the gas to leave home this summer, so we’re going to have a staycation right here.
The retailers are using the staycation phenom as justification to grab a chunk of our economic stimulus checks.
Staycation sales … what a concept.
I had all intents of using […]

I can’t count how many times I’ve heard (or read) folks say that they “wouldn’t buy a hybrid until it gets 100 miles per gallon (MPG).”
A good bit has changed since I wrote about the CalCars.com mod back in the summer of 2005.
That good bit is the price.
Think 100 MPG is so tough to achieve?
Behold […]

It’s all about the green. We’re all getting squeezed these days. Even if you’re not worried about the environment, you’ve got to be concerned about the green that’s flowing at an ever-increasing rate from your wallet.
Kids can be forgiven for their cluelessness when it comes to wasting energy. Parents are often the ones running around […]

I spent a couple of days at the NY Auto Show press preview last week and have been busy cranking out videos on many of the cool concepts and upcoming releases. If I could use just one word to describe this year’s show, it would have to be electric…
The tiny electric Subaru R1e and Nissan […]

I waded into the chat room last night to talk with Chris about an article I’d just written about 35 mile per gallon (MPG) cars and SUVs. The article’s a bit of an eye-opener in these economically troubled times, but it comes down to some little known facts and a strange twist of market fate. […]

While hot hatchbacks are different by definition, the new Volvo C30 is so different it stands out from the crowd. In a world where Mini Coopers have become commonplace, that’s not easy.
This hot hatch isn’t targeted at the typical boy racer. You’re not likely to see a decal-covered C30 in the parking lot of your […]

Global warming or not, all wheel drive (AWD) is a blessing in the wintertime. But for folks who are more of the sporting type, as opposed to the utilitarian, a SUV is overkill.
Enter the Subaru Legacy 3.0 R.
I spent a week with a Legacy 3.0 R and came away with great respect for Subaru. This […]

Did you know that Chevy built a handful of diesel El Caminos in the early 1980s? These critters are quite rare, considering that just hundreds of the smoke-belchers rolled off the assembly line in the 1983 and 1984 model years. They’re even more rare due to the Oldsmobile 350 V8 diesel’s reputation for early expiration. […]

You’ve probably heard that the folks in Washington D.C. have finally gotten around to raising our nation’s target for fuel economy. Sadly, 35 miles per gallon (MPG) by 2020 is too little, too late. The automakers that merely strive to meet that marker might not be around by the time that day rolls around. We […]

Yes Virginia (and every other state), you can find a four wheel drive with good gas mileage … as long as you say goodbye to driving that big honking SUV.
So forget about the Escalade … no matter if Cadillac’s giving 0% financing deals. But you don’t have to give up that dream of driving a 4WD […]

A massive improvement in pickup truck gas mileage is in the cards for the next twelve years. With the auto manufacturers starting to line up to improve average fuel economy to 35 miles per gallon (MPG) by 2020, one can’t help but wonder. Could they make that change in half the time?
A big change in […]

Ford’s running a fun ad campaign to promote the new 2008 Ford Focus. You may have seen the commercials where two guys are driving down the road in a snappy blue Focus, fighting over the voice controls in the MP3ified SYNC sound system.
They refer to the compact as “the new 35 mile per gallon Focus.”
To […]

Can’t stand getting squeezed at the gas pump and in your car payments?
You don’t have to spend twenty thousand bucks or more to buy a car that gets 40 miles per gallon on the highway.
You can go cheap. Really cheap.
Really really really cheap…
Submitted for your approval: 100 dirt-cheap cars that get 40+ miles per gallon […]

Need to haul around a bunch of folks and a whole lot of gear? Want to do it comfortably and use the minimum amount of fuel? Given thought to using biodiesel? It’s widely accepted that a well engineered diesel engine can produce 30% better fuel mileage than a comparable gasoline engine. Diesel power is a […]