Best MPG car with Auto Transmission?

[Daox]

Originally Posted by fmars62

well im mostly doin like 70% highway and 25% city so thats another reason why a think a hybrid will be a waste

I never understand why people say things like this. The first gen Prius is rated at 42 city, 41 hwy. According to the users on fueleconomy.gov most people are getting about 44 mpg. How is that a waste? Here is even some data from others with similar hwy/city commutes:

mpg state stop&go hwy
54.8 NC... 30....... 70
47.2 CA... 30....... 70
46.2 NY... 30....... 70
45.7 NY... 35....... 65
45.5 MN... 30....... 70
44.6 CT... 30....... 70


No other car in your price range can get anywhere close to that besides a TDI (users on fueleconomy.gov are averaging ~46 mpg with an 03 Jetta TDI). I love the TDIs but they just aren't worth what people are asking for them these days. In my area you're looking at $6k for an early 2000s model with nearly 200k miles on it.

Maintenance isn't that big of a deal mainly because the things just don't break. The Prius has won numerous awards for quality and customer satisfaction. That doesn't happen when you have a car that breaks down. Only a tiny fraction of the battery packs have had to be replaced. Last I read it was under 1%. If they do need to be fixed up there are places that will rebuild them for you for much less than the full replacement cost that is always cited in articles.

I'm not saying you need to buy a Prius. However, I would like to clear up some obvious misconceptions. Its sad to see so much misinformation still out there about a car that has performed more than solidly for the last 10+ years.

[Ryland]

Avoiding hybrids is limiting your options and is doing so only because of fear of the battery needing to be replaced, yet you "need" an automatic transmission a part that depending on the car is also just as likely to need to be replaced as a hybrid battery pack, the hybrid battery pack however can be rebuilt at a pretty reasonable cost and even replaced with a brand new one and most likely still be in your budget after buying a hybrid that has a bad pack and at that point you have a car that should be good for another 200,000+ miles and if you are driving as many highway miles as you are then the hybrid battery pack isn't doing much work and you instead get to take advantage of a more efficient engine design.

Of course my personal choice, would be a first generation Honda Insight, you are not going to find another vehicle out there with an automatic transmission that beats it for mileage and is still in your price range.

Otherwise if you want something that has a 40mpg EPA rating with an automatic, there is nothing out there, unless you get something built in the last 4 years.
Fuel Economy is a link to the search for gasoline only automatics built between 1984 and 2013, you can sort by EPA mileage for city, mixed or highway.

[johnunit]

A Prius is about the best fuel economy you're going to get, highway or city (though the advantage is bigger in the city) in a car that seats 4 comfortably and doesn't have a stickshift. My all-time worst mileage on a highway trip in the prius is 45mpg. Best was 56, and I haven't even driven it in summer weather yet.