The Most Economical Car Website
In this website you'll find the most efficient cars
for all different types of vehicle. We have the most economical
small cars and family cars, the most economical SUV's, the most
economical diesels and hybrids, and many more.
Because not all cars are available in every country and each country
has its own set of standards for testing fuel consumption we've
listed the MPG information by country.
An identical car will often have different fuel economy figures
in different countries because of the vary test procedures. U.S.
MPG figures for instance are always lower than U.K. figures for
the same car (even after adjusting for the different gallon sizes).
This is because the U.S. has a tougher testing schedule than the
U.K. resulting in less fuel efficient MPG readings. |
Fuel Efficient Engine Options
There are three different approaches that manufacturers
take when trying to develop the most economical car.
They can use a standard gasoline or petrol engine. This has historically
been the favoured approach simply because there was no alternative
until relatively recently.
The second choice is a diesel engine. Diesel technology has improved
immensely over the last two decades, becoming highly efficient and,
importantly, very refined.
The final approach open to car makers is the gasoline or petrol
electric hybrid. This technology has only been around in the last
decade and consists of two powerplants in the one vehicle - a gasoline
engine and an electric motor. |
Economical Gasoline Engines
When building the most economical car with a gasoline (petrol) engine its
vital to keep the engine capacity down. Often only 3 in-line cylinders are
used instead of the usual 4 cylinders. Cylinder deactivation can be used
on larger 6 or 8 cylinder cars to shut down cylinders when they're not needed.
Direct fuel injection into the cylinders of gasoline engines allows for
a more efficient fuel intake which results in lower fuel consumption.
Variable valve timing is another aid to fuel economy. The optimum valve
timing setting depends on the engine speed, so having a system that can
change the timings on the fly increases efficiency.
Economical Diesel Engines
Diesel engines are very popular in Europe and you'll
find the most economical car tables for the U.K. are full of them.
By contrast they are not widely used to power cars in the U.S. although
this is changing.
We're seeing much smaller diesel engines now which are suitable
for economical small cars. Turbochargers are fans which force extra
air into the cylinders and they allow manufacturers to get the same
performance from smaller engines.
Common rail diesel systems use an engine driven pump that produces
extremely high injection pressures. The high pressure results in
a more complete burn, more power and greater fuel efficiency. |
Economical Hybrid Engines
The hybrid approach to building the most economical
car is all about reducing the City MPG figure as much as possible.
The city is where the hybrid technology works best. Out on the open
road its largely negated.
Stop/start systems for a hybrid car's gasoline engine helps to save
fuel by switching it off when stationary. Hybrids that offer all-electric
modes boast even greater fuel savings since the gasoline (petrol)
engine does not need to run at all until a certain speed is reached.
Regenerative braking converts the the hybrid car's kinetic energy
into electric energy to be stored in batteries. Traditional brakes
dissipate the energy as heat. |
The
2011 Seat Ibiza Ecomotive is one of the
most
economical diesel cars. Now in its third incarnation it has consistently
raised the standard for fuel economy. The latest version has a combined
fuel consumption of 80.2 miles per U.K. gallon, up from 76.3 mpg for the
previous model. The Ecomotive is also a very cheap car to buy yet is a good
quality car.
The latest Seat Ibiza Ecomotive has had a major overhaul since the 2010
version. A brand new engine and the addition of a stop start system powered
by regenerative braking are the biggest improvements and also the biggest
reason why fuel consumption is down.
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Small economical cars sound very good in theory but when
you're inside one driving on the roads in heavy traffic there's always a
small part of your mind thinking 'this really doesn't feel like a very safe
car, I really don't want to crash in this'. Well the Suzuki Alto is one
small economical car that also promises to be very safe.
In fact the
Suzuki Alto has a lot more going for it than
safety because its one of the
least
expensive cars you can currently buy. New cars seem to be getting cheaper
and cheaper and the price point of the Suzuki Alto is quite phenomenal.
The other major point to note is this car's fuel economy. Its amazing -
just 4.8 liters per 100km. On paper then the Alto looks like a very good
small economical car that has great safety.
The
Nissan Pixo, available in Europe, is the same car as
the Alto, as is the
Maruti Suzuki A Star in India.
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During the first few years of Prius production Toyota came under a lot of
criticism about how bad for the environment the building and transporting
of their
most efficient car was. Considering this, many
people believed it was better for the environment to keep an old gas guzzler
than buy a new economical Prius. Toyota have taken this criticism on board
and have progressively made building the Prius more and more environmentally
friendly. But its not only their most efficient car thats been looked at.
Toyota have worked hard to make the construction of all their cars, their
buildings and their work practices as green as possible.
From 2003 to 2009 Toyota reduced their water usage for manufacturing vehicles
by 20%.
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The strong sales of BMW's efficient little Mini has resulted in other car
makers giving new life to iconic economical cars of the past. Fiat launched
a contemporary take on the classic tiny 500 in 2007 and, like the Mini,
it is becoming very popular, combining both retro styling with modern luxury
and functionality.
Just like the Mini, the original Fiat 500 was a car that ordinary working
class people could afford. It was a small, cheap and efficient car. The
relaunched model has tried to replicate all the characteristics of the original,
including the budget price. This is where the Fiat 500 differs from the
Mini. The top of the range 500 is called the Lounge and is only two-thirds
the price of the range topping Mini Cooper S.
The Fiat 500 consumes just 6.3 litres per 100 km which places it among the
most economical cars. This high fuel mileage
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The most efficient cars are tiny things that barely fit two people and one
suitcase. If you need more room than that the Toyota Prius is the
most
efficient car that also has a decent amount of space. In fact it
would do quite nicely as a family car. The Prius has been super successful
since its launch back in 2004. Its hard to believe this legendary car has
been around that long. Five years on and many car manufacturers still have
their hybrids on the drawing board. The unique aerodynamics of the Prius
was a defining feature for it and Toyota has largely kept the shape the
same for the latest 2010 version.
The Prius power source is a hybrid system consisting of a 1.8 liter 73 kW
gas engine coupled to a 60kW electric motor. Performance is pretty much
comparable to most other family hatchbacks. Its no sports car but its not
designed to be one. The Prius has amazing fuel efficiency. This most efficient
car returns fuel mileage figures of 51 miles per gallon around town and
48 mpg on the open road. No other family car of similar size with a traditional
internal combustion engine can come close to this vehicle for fuel efficiency.
Tailpipe emissions are very low also at just 89g of CO2 per km.
Since this is a Toyota, build quality on the Prius is excellent. Mechanically
its very robust, is made of quality parts and is well put together. This
car shouldn't break down on you. In fact, I drive 15,000 miles a year, and
in the last 5 years since it was launched, I can't remember seeing any Prius
on the side of the road broken down.
The Prius has a range of features at the forefront of car technology. The
best features are saved for the optional Advanced Technology Package.
More
on this most efficient car...
Since its launch in 2002 the Hyundai Getz has proven to be a very popular
economic car. The combination of budget motoring, reliability and good looks
has been a winning formula for Hyundai who are now only outsold by Toyota
in this category of car.
The economical Hyundai Getz has recently had a facelift but really very
little has changed apart from some minor cosmetics. Hyundai are obviously
believers of the saying 'if it ain't broken, don't fix it'. Its competitors
in the small car market are coming up with more and more futuristic designs
but Hyundai has chosen to stick with the conservative but neat styling of
the Getz. It is a pretty little car.
Sales of the small economic car have been helped by an overall rise in quality
of Hyundai over the last 5 years.
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