2010 Audi A3 TDI

Since there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution to everyone’s vehicular needs, and since fuel efficiency is on the minds of most Americans, here are the EPA’s top fuel misers by vehicle type.
Most Americans are struggling to make ends meet these days, pinching pennies wherever they can.

This is especially true at the gas pump. “It’s been apparent for a few years that consumers want better fuel economy,” says Bill Charmley, a deputy director at the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Transportation and Air Quality. Automakers have responded, albeit slowly, by producing more miserly machines than ever before, according to the EPA’s recently released list of the most fuel-efficient 2010 model-year vehicles.

Fact is, EPA mpg ratings have been on the rise since 2004. Between 2008 and 2009, they grew by one-tenth of a gallon, from an average of 21 to 21.1 mpg. When the 2010 model-year vehicles are factored in, the rate of improvement could be much more dramatic, Charmley says: “What you’ll begin to see this year and over the next several years, for the fleet as a whole, will be important, incremental improvements that we haven’t seen in a long time.”
While hybrids continue to dominate the EPA’s list of overall fuel-economy leaders, they aren’t for everyone. To help you find a vehicle that won’t cost you an arm and a leg to keep juiced up and suits your specific needs, here are the most fuel-efficient vehicles in the most popular vehicle categories.

SUBCOMPACTS: Toyota Yaris (29/36 mpg)
The Yaris has ruled this class since 2007, when it beat out the previous subcompact mpg leader, Volkswagen’s New Beetle. The EPA’s list of fuel-economy leaders includes, where possible, an automatic and a manual transmission vehicle for each class. The Yaris grabbed both slots, with 29 mpg city/35 mpg highway for the automatic and 29/36 mpg for the manual.

2010 Honda Civic Hybrid

COMPACTS: Honda Civic Hybrid (40/45 mpg)
In the EPA’s overall list of the most fuel-efficient new vehicles, the Honda Civic Hybrid ranked third. But its 40 mpg city/45 mpg highway puts it at the top of the crowded field of compacts, even outperforming Honda’s newer hybrid, the revamped Insight. The Civic could get better in the next couple of years. As Charmley points out, automakers tend to roll out a major upgrade to their hybrid drivetrains in a single model — in Honda’s case, the 2010 Insight — and then apply those lessons and components to other hybrid vehicles. Although it has led the compact class in fuel economy for years, the Civic Hybrid is due for a redesign.

2010 Toyota Prius

MIDSIZE CARS: Toyota Prius (51/48 mpg)
The 2010 Toyota Prius has pushed the limits of hybrid technology to an industry-leading 51 mpg city/48 mpg highway — a boost of 3 mpg compared with the previous Prius. That also makes the third-generation Prius the most fuel-efficient new model by EPA estimates — a title it has held since 2007, when Honda stopped producing its 2-seat hybrid Insight. The Prius reign could end next year, though, if GM keeps its promises and delivers the plug-in Volt, with its expected 230 mpg. Whether or not the Volt materializes and adds an extra zero to the EPA’s fuel-economy estimates, look for a trickle-down effect as the Prius’ technology produces similar mpg improvements in Toyota’s other hybrids.

2010 Hyundai Sonata

LARGE CARS: Hyundai Sonata (22/32 mpg)
The Sonata has been dueling with the Honda Accord in this class for years. The Sonata had the best fuel economy for the 2007 model, only to be beaten by the Accord in 2008. Hyundai came back last year, and has maintained the top slot for 2010, edging out the 4-door manual Accord by a hair — the Sonata has a rating of 22 mpg city/32 mpg highway, compared with the Accord’s 22/31 mpg. What’s traditionally been a close race could be a blowout next time, if Hyundai manages to get its lithium-ion-powered hybrid Sonata into showrooms by October 2010.

2010 Audi A3 TDI

SMALL STATION WAGONS: Audi A3 (Diesel) (30/42 mpg)
In a class that has yet to include a hybrid, the prize for best fuel economy goes to the only diesels around. Traditionally, that meant Volkswagen’s automatic and manual Jetta SportWagen. This year, there’s a third diesel — the Audi A3 — which managed to tie the Jetta SportWagen with a rating of 30 mpg city/42 mpg highway. The A3 also offers one of the best examples of diesel’s potential cost-effectiveness. The equivalent gas-burning A3 gets 22/28 mpg, which the EPA estimates will cost the average driver an extra $585 per year.

2010 Volkswagen Passat Wagon

MIDSIZE STATION WAGONS: Volkswagen Passat Wagon (22/31 mpg)
Possibly the most dubious of the fuel-economy leaders, the Passat Wagon wins best-in-category by simply showing up. Just seven model year 2010 wagons fit the EPA’s definition of a midsize station wagon — 130 to 159 cubic feet of combined volume for passengers and cargo — down from 11 models last year. With a 22 mpg city/31 mpg highway rating, the Passat Wagon cruises into first place. To be fair, Volkswagen topped the previous winner, the Kia Rondo, by 4 mpg on highways. It might be a short-lived victory, though. “If you go back to the ’70s, there were a lot of station wagons on the road,” Charmley says. “Today, there are just not as many of these vehicles being built or sold.” The SUV has already helped the large station wagon class disappear altogether, and it’s only a matter of time before midsize wagons are driven off the same proverbial cliff.

2010 Ford Escape Hybrid

SPORT-UTILITY VEHICLES: Ford Escape Hybrid FWD (34/31 mpg)
It’s easy to see why the Ford Escape Hybrid made the EPA’s list of overall fuel-efficient vehicles. Ford’s hybrid powertrain technology, also employed in the Mercury Mariner and Mazda Tribute SUVs, has been on the road since 2005, and can deliver 34 mpg city/31 mpg highway. More surprising is that the Escape Hybrid gets better overall mileage than the considerably smaller Toyota Camry Hybrid, and better city mileage than the ridiculously smaller smart fortwo coupe. Expect the Escape Hybrid to become an even bigger mpg threat soon: Charmley says vehicles get the full redesign treatment, on average, every five years.

2010 Mazda MAZDA5

MINIVANS: Mazda Mazda5 (22/28 mpg)
Minivan buyers aren’t exactly clamoring for a super-efficient option, which might be why the Mazda5 — in manual and automatic — has been the most fuel-efficient in its class for three years running. The reason for the Mazda5’s winning streak is simple: Its 2.3 liter 4-cylinder engine is the smallest in a minivan. Snicker all you want, but the benefits of fuel economy can be even clearer for low- mpg vehicles. Running a Dodge Caravan for a year could cost $2,227 in gas money, compared with $1,742 in a Mazda 5 (again, according to the EPA).

STANDARD PICKUP TRUCKS: Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid 2WD (21/22 mpg)
A few mpg more or less might not look like much on paper, but when GM introduced its hybrid pickups a year ago, the potential for fuel savings was staggering. At 21 mpg city/22 mpg highway, the nearly identical Chevy Silverado Hybrid 2WD and GMC Sierra Hybrid 2WD cost $600 less to run per year than their nonhybrid equivalents. Neither model has been updated for 2010, but GM has added hybrid 4WD versions that the EPA estimates burn just slightly more gas than the 2WDs. Until another automaker builds a hybrid in this class, GM will continue to boast the best mileage in a standard pickup, and the only hybrid pickup trucks in the world.