Rkpatt. If the mielage has dropped that much, there is something up. At only 71K on a 3.8 I would venture that it is a sensor out, and most likely one or more of the O2 sensors in the exhaust. There is a maintenance interval for these that (IIRC) is around 60K miles. They may still be "close enough" to not trip the scanguage.
That is assuming that you don't have a brake dragging or bearing going out that would not show up in a comuter scan anyway.
Back on topic....
Every vehicle that has been mentioned with good statements will not be too mushy on a straight drive, and bigger cars generally require less steering correction with their longer wheelbase on highway drives (I sometimes drive a jeep XJ and I see a LOT of steering correction
) Any of them are good, what it ultimately comes down to is drive what you are comfortable in, keep up on the maintenance and tune-ups, drive conservatively, and enjoy.
Jim