- In this report
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- Ownership costs
- Best new vehicles under $25,000
- Highest scoring American vehicles
- Best & worst fuel economy
- Best city/highway mpg
- Best & worst acceleration
- Best & worst in safety performance
- Best for overall safety
- Highs & lows of testing
- Most overlooked cars
- Most fun to drive
- Best for comfort
- Best off-road
- Best & worst three-row vehicles
- 2009 Annual Auto Issue
This article was featured in the April 2009 issue of Consumer Reports Magazine.
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Best & worst fuel economy
Last reviewed: April 2009
These lists show the vehicles within each category that achieved the best or worst gas mileage in our real-world tests. We have selected mpg cutoffs that are relative to each category. For example, a vehicle that gets 19 mpg would not be a standout among wagons, but it would be among the highest in the midsized SUV or minivan categories.
Best
| Rank | Make & Model | Overall mpg | City mpg | Highway mpg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUDGET CARS Overall mpg = 30 or higher | ||||
| 1 | Smart ForTwo Passion | 39 | 30 | 44 |
| 2 | Scion xD (MT) | 34 | 25 | 40 |
| 3 | Toyota Yaris Sedan | 33 | 23 | 44 |
| 4 | Honda Fit Sport (MT) | 33 | 24 | 37 |
| 5 | Toyota Yaris Hatchback | 30 | 22 | 38 |
| 6 | Honda Fit base | 30 | 21 | 39 |
| SMALL CARS Overall mpg = 28 or higher | ||||
| 1 | Honda Civic Hybrid | 37 | 26 | 47 |
| 2 | Toyota Corolla LE | 32 | 23 | 40 |
| 3 | Toyota Corolla (base, MT) | 32 | 23 | 39 |
| 4 | Honda Civic EX (MT) | 31 | 22 | 40 |
| 5 | Mazda3 i (MT) | 30 | 21 | 42 |
| 6 | Ford Focus SES (MT) | 29 | 20 | 37 |
| 7 | Honda Civic EX | 28 | 18 | 43 |
| 8 | Kia Spectra EX (MT) | 28 | 20 | 35 |
| SPORTY CARS/ROADSTERS Overall mpg = 25 or higher (tested with manual transmission) | ||||
| 1 | Mini Cooper (base) | 33 | 24 | 41 |
| 2 | Nissan Sentra SE-R Spec V | 30 | 23 | 39 |
| 3 | Mini Cooper S | 30 | 22 | 38 |
| 4 | Lotus Elise | 29 | 24 | 33 |
| 5 | Mazda MX-5 Miata Grand Touring | 27 | 21 | 32 |
| 6 | Honda Civic Si | 27 | 19 | 35 |
| 7 | BMW Z4 3.0i | 26 | 19 | 34 |
| 8 | Scion tC | 26 | 19 | 33 |
| 9 | Volkswagen GTI | 25 | 19 | 32 |
| 10 | Honda S2000 | 25 | 19 | 30 |
| 11 | Dodge Caliber SRT4 | 25 | 18 | 32 |
| 12 | Volvo C30 T5 1.0 | 25 | 17 | 35 |
| SEDANS Overall mpg = 24 or higher | ||||
| 1 | Toyota Camry Hybrid | 34 | 28 | 41 |
| 2 | Volkswagen Jetta TDI | 33 | 23 | 47 |
| 3 | Nissan Altima Hybrid | 32 | 27 | 36 |
| 4 | Mercedes-Benz E320 Bluetec | 29 | 24 | 35 |
| 5 | Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid | 27 | 18 | 38 |
| 6 | Hyundai Sonata GLS (4-cyl.) | 26 | 17 | 40 |
| 7 | Honda Accord LX-P (4-cyl., MT) | 26 | 18 | 35 |
| 8 | Nissan Altima 2.5 S (4-cyl.) | 25 | 18 | 33 |
| 9 | Chevrolet Malibu LT (4-cyl.) | 25 | 16 | 38 |
| 10 | Saturn Aura XE (4-cyl.) | 24 | 15 | 37 |
| 11 | Toyota Camry LE (4-cyl.) | 24 | 16 | 36 |
| 12 | Lexus IS 250 | 24 | 17 | 34 |
| 13 | Volkswagen Jetta (2.5) | 24 | 17 | 33 |
| 14 | Mazda6 i Sport (4-cyl.) | 24 | 15 | 35 |
| 15 | Volkswagen Passat 2.0T | 24 | 16 | 34 |
| WAGONS & HATCHBACKS Overall mpg = 25 or higher | ||||
| 1 | Toyota Prius (base) | 44 | 35 | 50 |
| 2 | Toyota Prius Touring | 42 | 34 | 47 |
| 3 | Mini Cooper Clubman | 29 | 21 | 37 |
| 4 | Toyota Matrix S (2.4) | 27 | 19 | 36 |
| 5 | Audi A3 2.0T (4-cyl.) | 25 | 18 | 33 |
| 6 | Mazda3 s Grand Touring | 25 | 17 | 35 |
| 7 | Saturn Astra XE | 25 | 17 | 34 |
| SMALL SUVS Overall mpg = 21 or higher | ||||
| 1 | Subaru Forester 2.5X (MT) | 24 | 18 | 30 |
| 2 | Toyota RAV4 (base, 4-cyl.) | 23 | 17 | 29 |
| 3 | Nissan Rogue SL | 22 | 17 | 27 |
| 4 | Mitsubishi Outlander LS (4-cyl.) | 22 | 16 | 30 |
| 5 | Jeep Compass Sport | 22 | 16 | 28 |
| 6 | Subaru Forester 2.5X | 22 | 16 | 28 |
| 7 | Honda CR-V EX | 21 | 15 | 29 |
| 8 | Honda Element EX | 21 | 14 | 29 |
| SPORTY COMPACT SUVS Overall mpg = 19 or higher | ||||
| 1 | Toyota RAV4 Limited (V6) | 22 | 15 | 29 |
| 2 | Volkswagen Tiguan SEL | 20 | 13 | 28 |
| 3 | Subaru Forester 2.5XT Limited | 20 | 14 | 26 |
| 4 | BMW X3 3.0si | 19 | 14 | 26 |
| 5 | Mitsubishi Outlander XLS (V6) | 19 | 13 | 26 |
| MIDSIZED SUVS Overall mpg = 18 or higher | ||||
| 1 | Toyota Highlander Hybrid Limited | 24 | 20 | 28 |
| 2 | Lexus RX 400h (hybrid) | 23 | 16 | 29 |
| 3 | Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid | 19 | 14 | 25 |
| 4 | Lexus RX 350 | 19 | 13 | 26 |
| 5 | Nissan Murano SL | 19 | 13 | 26 |
| 6 | Toyota Highlander Limited | 18 | 13 | 26 |
| 7 | Hyundai Santa Fe Limited (3.3) | 18 | 12 | 25 |
| 8 | Honda Pilot EX-L | 18 | 12 | 26 |
| MINIVANS Overall mpg = 19 or higher | ||||
| 1 | Toyota Sienna XLE (FWD) | 19 | 13 | 28 |
| 2 | Honda Odyssey EX | 19 | 12 | 28 |
| PICKUPS Overall mpg = 16 or higher | ||||
| 1 | Toyota Tacoma (base, V6) | 17 | 13 | 21 |
| 2 | Chevrolet Colorado LS (5-cyl.) | 16 | 11 | 23 |
Worst
| Rank | Make & Model | Overall mpg | City mpg | Highway mpg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUDGET CARS Overall mpg = 28 or less | ||||
| 1 | Chevrolet Aveo LT | 25 | 17 | 37 |
| 2 | Chevorlet Aveo5 1LT | 26 | 18 | 35 |
| 3 | Nissan Versa 1.8 S | 27 | 19 | 35 |
| 4 | Nissan Versa 1.8 SL | 28 | 20 | 36 |
| 5 | Hyundai Accent GLS | 28 | 19 | 37 |
| 6 | Kia Rio LX | 28 | 19 | 37 |
| SMALL CARS Overall mpg = 24 or less | ||||
| 1 | Chevrolet Cobalt LT | 24 | 16 | 34 |
| 2 | Subaru Impreza 2.5i | 24 | 17 | 31 |
| 3 | Volkswagen Jetta 2.5 | 24 | 17 | 33 |
| ROADSTERS/SPORTY CARS Overall mpg = 17 or less | ||||
| 1 | Dodge Viper SRT10 | 15 | 10 | 24 |
| 2 | Mercedes-Benz SL550 | 17 | 11 | 26 |
| 3 | Cadillac XLR (base) | 17 | 11 | 27 |
| SEDANS Overall mpg = 17 or less | ||||
| 1 | Mercury Grand Marquis LSE | 16 | 10 | 25 |
| 2 | Chrysler 300 C (V8) | 16 | 10 | 27 |
| 3 | Dodge Charger R/T (V8) | 17 | 11 | 26 |
| 4 | Buick Lucerne (V8) | 17 | 11 | 26 |
| 5 | Audi A8 L | 17 | 11 | 26 |
| 6 | Lincoln Town Car Signature | 17 | 11 | 27 |
| 7 | Mercedes-Benz S550 | 17 | 11 | 27 |
| 8 | Cadillac DTS Luxury II | 17 | 11 | 28 |
| 9 | Pontiac G8 GT (V8) | 17 | 11 | 25 |
| WAGONS & HATCHBACKS Overall mpg = 19 or less | ||||
| 1 | Volvo XC70 | 18 | 12 | 25 |
| 2 | Subaru Outback 3.0 R VDC Limited (6-cyl.) | 19 | 13 | 28 |
| SMALL SUVS Overall mpg = 16 or less | ||||
| 1 | Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara | 15 | 10 | 21 |
| 2 | Jeep Liberty Sport | 16 | 11 | 22 |
| 3 | Dodge Nitro SLT | 16 | 11 | 23 |
| MIDSIZED SUVS Overall mpg = 14 or less | ||||
| 1 | Dodge Durango SLT (5.7, V8) | 13 | 8 | 20 |
| 2 | Jeep Commander Limited (5.7, V8) | 13 | 9 | 19 |
| 3 | Land Rover LR3 SE (V8) | 13 | 9 | 21 |
| 4 | Land Rover Range Rover Sport HSE | 14 | 9 | 20 |
| 5 | Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer (V8) | 14 | 9 | 21 |
| 6 | Hummer H3 | 14 | 10 | 20 |
| MINIVANS Overall mpg = 17 or less | ||||
| 1 | Dodge Grand Caravan SXT (3.8) | 16 | 11 | 26 |
| 2 | Kia Sedona EX | 17 | 11 | 25 |
| 3 | Chrysler Town & Country Limited (4.0) | 17 | 11 | 27 |
| PICKUPS Overall mpg = 13 or less | ||||
| 1 | Ford F-250 Lariat (6.4, turbodsl) | 10 | 7 | 16 |
| 2 | Nissan Titan SE (5.6, V8) | 13 | 9 | 18 |
| 3 | Dodge Ram 2500 Laramie (6.7, turbodsl) | 13 | 9 | 19 |
| 4 | Chevrolet Avalanche LT | 13 | 9 | 20 |
| 5 | Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD LTZ (6.6, turbodsl) | 13 | 9 | 21 |
Posted: February 2009 — Consumer Reports Magazine issue: April 2009
