Shopping for Fuel Efficiency? Kelley Blue Book Suggests Waiting

[Kal-El]

KBB is right. Always do the math before changing cars. Many people actually don't. Which is why many people pay $30K on a hybrid to save a few hundred bucks a year on gas.

Originally Posted by sbergman27

Americans have the attention span of a snail-darter. They buy F-150s and think that they have some sort of inalienable right to cheap gasoline, despite any suffering which might be going on elsewhere. They whine when gasoline goes over $3/gal... but as soon as gas prices come down, they forget all about it. Until the next time.

The trend, of course, is clear. Prices are rising. And "next time" is just around the corner.

I bought my 1988 Chevy Sprint Metro (EPA rating 54/58 mpg city/hwy) back in '92 and have kept it ever since. To be sure, my Yaris does well for fuel economy, too. But if all 4 of my cars fell into the river, and I could only save one... it would probably be my Sprint. In any particular driving situation, it gets about 25% more mpg than the Yaris.

Getting back from a trip to Colorado with an average of 57 mpg is so very satisfying.

-Steve

Problem is, is that the old Metros would never even come close to passing today's safety standards.

Even if you were to deactivate all of the airbags in a Yaris, the Yaris would still be far safer than an '88 Metro. In fact, a Smart ForTwo is far safer than an '88 Metro.

But safety aside, the Metro also has no power, no creature comforts, much less space, and rides like a tin can.

You just can't compare the mileage of a Metro to any modern car for those reasons. It would make more sense to compare a Metro to a motorcycle.