Ditched the Trailblazer and van for an HHR
 

...and picked up a Chevy HHR. Out of what was available in this area, at my price range, and considering some utility (and room for my big, tall self), it seemed the best fit. On the short list were a Pontiac Vibe, a Toyota Matrix (same car, really, but the Matrix was nicer/newer), and a Scion Xb.

We took Herman (the HHR) to Tuscaloosa today, did a tornado damage tour to see how the area is progressing... a good bit of in-town driving there. Then I came back, mixing the drive back between a 55 mph highway and the interstate. I think I ended up recreating a little worse set of conditions than my average commute will be, and ended up reading 28mpg even, on the dash readout. When I fill up again, I'll see how close the readout is to reality.

Some of the things I wanted to do with the Trailblazer still apply here. I'd like to install a real-time mpg gauge and maybe see if there are some relatively simple mods I can apply to this car.

Since the HHR is 1996 or later, it will have the OBD-2 port. So you should be able to plug a ScanGauge or an UltraGauge in, and get real-time MPG readouts that way. The SG is the "official" gauge that the guys on cleanmpg like. I guess the MPG calculations are done better?

The UG is much nicer looking. It causes problems with some cars, though--specifically MINIs. (And possibly BMWs, assuming they share the same electronic architecture.) When you leave an UG plugged into a MINI overnight, it often "wakes up" the car about a half hour after you turn it off, which can drain the battery overnight.

I have a MINI, so the choice of gauges was obvious.

-soD

A mini was on the short list for us, but I'll keep your post in mind while shopping. I was looking at the SG2, but I'll check out the UG too.