Gas Mileage

Ford will lower the 47-mpg gas mileage rating for its C-Max Hybrid hatchback, a much-disputed metric that was never backed up by real-world owner experience. Soon after the cars launched a year ago, widespread media coverage--on this site and Consumer Reports, among others--indicated that owners...

As the U.S. still eagerly awaits the introduction of the 3-cylinder EcoBoost Ford Fiesta, European drivers are buying Ford's tiny-engined cars in their droves. Various versions off the 1.0-liter, three-cylinder, turbocharged gasoline unit are available in both the Fiesta and larger Focus--and when...

Putting a tiny engine in a hairy-chested sports car doesn't seem like the perfect recipe for fun, but British sports car companies have always been a little... different. Caterham is one of those companies. Back in 1972, it bought the rights to Colin Chapman's lightweight Lotus Seven sports car...

The 'Ultra' tag will be familiar to fans of endurance motor racing, seen since 2010 on Audi's Le Mans-winning race cars. It hasn't yet featured on an Audi production car though, up until now--and as you'd expect, it's Audi's most fuel-efficient production car ever. The Audi A3 1.6 TDI Ultra uses a...

Just how close do cars get to their official EPA gas mileage figures? We expect it's a question many of our readers are familiar with--either in keeping an eye on their own car's gas mileage, or from friends asking about their next car. It's become all the more important in recent months, with...

Sometimes the best ideas are also the simplest. That was our first thought on seeing one gas-saving idea from nothing less than an oil company in South Korea. Called the HERE balloon, it's oil giant S-Oil's way of reducing the time drivers spend looking for a space in a large parking lot--and...

The humble automatic transmission has come along in leaps and bounds over the year, and modern systems are often more efficient than their manual equivalents. For the manual gearbox itself, economy is still very much down to "the nut behind the wheel", so anything that optimizes a driver's shift...

Back in 2010, we asked why so few of today's cars were among the most fuel efficient ever. Look down the list of the most fuel-efficient vehicles sold in the U.S, and only a small handful had been built in the previous decade--cars such as the familiar Prius, and the all-too-brief but brilliant...

It used to be so simple to tell which cars were coupes and which weren't. And not just because the word "Coupe" was emblazoned on your vinyl roof pillars in metallic script. Generally, if it was a little sleeker than the average car, had only two doors and a proper trunk, you had yourself a coupe...

That noise you heard yesterday afternoon? That was the sound of the other shoe dropping. Ford said yesterday that it will "enhance the on-road fuel economy performance" of the 77,000 2013 hybrid models it's sold over the last year, in an effort to "improve customer satisfaction." The announcement...

If you ever had any doubt that hybrids were durable--and many people do--here's a case study to set your mind at ease. A white base-model 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid has just crossed 500,000 miles, which possibly makes it the highest-mileage Escape Hybrid on the road. That's much higher than the Escape...

Every once in a while, we end up driving a car that leaves us utterly confused. The 2013 MINI Cooper Paceman John Cooper Works ALL4 we drove for a day last week is one such vehicle. It's striking, but far less functional than the MINI Countryman from which it's derived. The handling is decent, but...

If you're one of the millions of Americans preparing for your summer vacation, you might also be readying the family's bicycles for some exercise while you're away. Chances are, this involves some kind of roof-mounted bicycle rack for your car. And this can have a dramatic effect on your gas...

As automobile manufacturers strive for greater fuel efficiency, it's the low-hanging fruit proving most effective for immediate gains. That's why Nissan's new 2014 Versa Note--replacing the old 2012 Versa hatchback--has improved by a full 5 mpg on the old car's combined economy. The 2014 Nissan...

Mazda is on a roll at the moment. Its CX-5 crossover is among the most efficient in class, and the new 40 mpg highway Mazda 6 likewise. The 2014 Mazda 3 was also unveiled recently, and thanks to images leaked on the internet a few days ago, Mazda has now seen fit to reveal the 2014 Mazda 3 sedan in...

Two drivers have set a new Guinness World Record for achieving the lowest fuel consumption in the lower 48 states in a non-hybrid car. Wayne Gerdes and co-driver Bob Winger returned an amazing 78 mpg around the 48 contiguous states in a 2013 Volkswagen Passat TDI, the highest-mpg diesel on sale in...

Mazda launched its all-new 2014 Mazda 3 compact hatchback today at coordinated events in New York, Melbourne, Istanbul, St. Petersburg, and London. The new Mazda 3 lineup, which will include a four-door sedan version as well when it goes on sale this September, is the second model designed around...

The U.S. will save a lot more gasoline by improving the fuel efficiency of gas-guzzling high-volume pickup trucks than it will swapping out Toyota Corollas for Prius hybrids. That's mathematical fact. Now, finally, the makers of the three most popular pickup truck lines sold in the U.S. are...

Politics in New York City are a tough, bruising game. Pit a billionaire Mayor with a desire to make the city work better and cut carbon emissions against the entrenched interests of taxi owners, and you get an ongoing battle. The latest skirmish is a concession by the NYC Taxi and Limousine...

Noticed engines getting smaller recently? You're not alone. "Downsizing", as it's called, involves using a smaller engine to do the work of a larger alternative--usually through turbocharging--while enjoying the fuel efficiency benefits associated with its size. Engineering firm Ricardo thinks this...