cleanspeed1 mentions the Neon 2.0L, which I think would be a good choice of engine if you had the funds; I’ve added some info you will hopefully find useful
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In the UK you could spec a Voyager Gen 3, or Neon, with a gas 2.0L 131 hp engine and 5-speed manual gearbox. There was also a 2.5L turbo diesel & manual ‘box fitted to Gen 3 Voyagers and various Jeep Cherokee models. Also, Gen 4 Voyager and later Jeeps had 2 diesel choices, a 2.5L or 2.8L CRD common rail, I think all 2.5L had 5 sp manuals and all 2.8L had autos.
My family lived in Canada in the mid 90s for a short time, and my dad thought the 2.0L 5sp Voyager we bought when we moved back to the UK was a fair bit quicker and less thirsty than the Canadian 3.0 V6 auto we had. You might find it funny that most people in the UK think the Voyager is enormous haha!
I don’t know whether any diesel/ 2.0L engines with manual ‘box were available in the US but no doubt they should get you back to 30+ mpg, maybe much more with a diesel
