This is the third in a four part series of determining which car we should buy.
Hybrid cars are ugly.
That was about the only thing I knew about them. So while I vaguely thought it would be good to get a vehicle with good mileage, I was far (far) from being sold on it. Then I started to look at the numbers.
When you want to see just how the mileage stacks up, the best place to go is fueleconomy.gov. They give details on every single car sold in America. (I would warn against trusting whatever site pops up first on a quick internet search – even one reputable site I visited was completely wrong. Perhaps they were basing it on an old list, but that wasn’t made clear in the article.) Here is the official chart of 2012 fuel economy leaders:
In addition to showing the estimated mileage is for each vehicle, you can also see the differences in estimated annual fuel costs. I for one had never taken the time to consider how much money I spend on gas, but when I saw that a midsize car can cost as little as $1150/year or as much as $4800/year, I was ready to start reconsidering. A difference of $3650 a year is huge! That amount can add up to a new car in like five years!
Combined MPG and estimated annual fuel costs.
For details, see page 5 of the comprehensive 2012 Fuel Economy Guide.
This really helped move me from being vaguely committed “because better mileage is good for the world, yada yada” to being very committed “because better mileage is important for my pocketbook!” I know, I should be more selfless and more concerned about our dependence on foreign fossil fuels than on my own financial situation, but at least in this case both motivations have the same conclusion! More MPGs, please!
The leaders of the pack (vroom, vroom)
This meant it was time to really consider fuel efficiency as a primary factor. I took a closer look at the lists. I nixed the vehicles that we realistically wouldn’t buy – trucks, vehicles that need weird fuel (e.g., diesel, electric, plug-in hyrbids), vehicles that are obviously too expensive (e.g., Lexus), and any other random brands that we probably wouldn’t consider (e.g., Scion). I chose 28 combined mpg to be the bare minimum we’d be willing to consider (though we’d prefer 30+). I focused on combined because it makes more sense for us, as we drive a lot both in the city and on the highway.With these guidelines in place, I looked over the vehicle class categories. It’s a no-brainer that the compact cars had the best efficiency overall. But for families, they’re really too small to be practical. Car seats are huge, and official recommendations keep kids in them until they’re eight years old (!). Midsize cars may still be snug depending on how much junk you haul around, but they’re also noteworthy for having a variety of options with good mileage. There are fourteen different cars in this class that get 28 mpg or better. (Note that the combined mpg values range because of differences in engine sizes, trim lines, etc.)
Fuel efficiency of top midsize cars.
I was quite surprised to see the difference between midsize and large cars. There was only one large size car that made the cut – the Hyundai Sonata at 26-28 mpg. There were three small station wagons (think hatchbacks, not wood paneling) that fit the bill, but I dubbed them too small. The one midsize station wagon that would work is the Toyota Prius v, at 42 mpg.
Next I moved on to SUVs. I didn’t really expect any of them to make the cut, but to my surprise there were two that made it. These SUVs even beat out the mileage of the large cars, which makes me really start to question how important the size and shape of a vehicle are when it comes to mileage. The two SUVs with good mileage were the Ford Escape Hybrid at 29-32 mpg and the Toyota Highlander Hybrid at 28 mpg.
However, you can’t just assume a hybrid SUV will have good mileage – the Chevy Tahoe Hybrid and GMC Yukon Hybrid both got a pathetic 21 mpg. These were beat out by many other non-hybrid SUVs that could get up to 26 mpg.
Finally we come to the most disappointing class of all. The minivans.
A Mini Rant on Minivans
The mileage of minivans is bad. Outrageously bad. And when I say outrageously, I mean I was actually outraged when I saw the numbers.
Fuel efficiency of minivans. Deplorable.
Why on earth are minivans still averaging 20-21 mpg? Seriously. There has been no effort whatsoever in the past thirty years to improve this? The 1984 Dodge Caravan got 22 mpg, and now the 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan gets 20 mpg? Really?
Okay, I can’t completely fault the automakers – perhaps if there were vocal public outrage, they would do something. But they really have no motivation to do so. There’s no competition. If you have three or more kids, you essentially must buy a minivan. A large SUV is another option, but you’re going to be stuck in the same gas-guzzling situation.
It can’t just be the size. The Toyota Highlander Hybrid can seat seven and gets 28 mpg. Why are minivans lagging so far behind? Shouldn’t this be an excellent opportunity for some manufacturer to up their game and publicize the heck out of it? I actually contacted several automakers to ask why they hadn’t introduced hybrid minivans yet. The only response that wasn’t some vague “Thanks for your interest but we’re still researching/we’re not going to answer you” was from Toyota, who said they actually do have a small hybrid minivan with great mileage in Japan, but no plans to introduce it to the American market.
Sigh. There goes my dream of ever getting a minivan. My husband was already not in favor of it, but this pushed him (way) over the top. Maybe something will come out by the time we have a third child, especially with the popularity of hybrids in recent years, but I’m not holding my breath.
And the winners are… hybrids!
Hybrids are the clear winners in the mpg race, and we will likely buy one. When I told my dad this, he immediately warned me that they have to be plugged in and the batteries don't last very long and when you replace the batteries they're extremely expensive. Apparently those are myths - hybrid batteries are made to last the life of the vehicle, and usually come with 8-10 year and 150,000-200,000 mile warranties. Though there are some new plug-in hybrids on the market, the regular hybrids do not need to be plugged in.Remember we're just looking at mpg here, not price – but it’s definitely worth pulling out a calculator to see if the money you save on fuel costs over the life of your car will be worth paying the extra upfront. You can find the estimated annual fuel cost of any vehicle here. Multiply that by how many years you expect to have the car, and then compare that to the gas costs of the other non-hybrids you may be considering. My husband declares we will drive our cars until they die – therefore hybrids are the obvious choice for us.
If you're already set on a certain model but are curious about whether you should get the hybrid or non-hybrid version, go here for an easy comparison. Check out the image below - I love that they give you the years to payback the difference. That amount of time to payback ranges from none (the regular Lincoln MKZ gets 21 mpg but the MKZ Hybrid gets 39 - and they cost the same! same thing with the Buick LaCrosse!) to 6 years (GMC Yukon Denali 2WD gets 15.6 mpg, the hybrid gets 21.1), with most of them coming in around 3-5 years. I don't know about you, but we keep our cars longer than that.
At the end of the day, here’s my short-list for cars based on fuel efficiency:
- Toyota Prius – At 50 mpg, it’s the quintessential hybrid for a reason. Even though I personally think it’s lacking in looks, it just can’t be beat in mileage.
- Toyota Camry Hybrid, Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, Kia Optima Hybrid – These get 37-41 mpg. Still wow.
- Ford Fusion Hybrid – An American car finally weighs in at 39 mpg! The Ford Escape Hybrid is also noteworthy for being a big three SUV with 29-32 mpg.
- Chevrolet Cruze Eco, Hyundai Elantra, and Hyundai Sonata – Get good mileage (27-33 mpg) for a smaller price tag.
How does fuel efficiency factor into your vehicle choice? Am I the only one outraged about minivans?