mpg-o-editor

Is the Manual Transmission Staging a Comeback?

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While the manual transmission was written off for dead just a few years ago, the good old stick shift just might be staging a comeback. With a new wave of fuel-efficient, fun-to-drive cars, manual transmission are riding back into spotlight. What’s old is new. From high-end Aston Martins and Lamborghinis, to the reborn retro muscle … Read more

2011 Mazda2 Touring Review

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MPG-o-Matic 2011 Mazda2 Review Summary:
With the 2011 Mazda2, the experience adds up to more than the sum of the parts. While not a segment leader in either fuel-economy or straight-line performance, the Mazda2 delivers on both thrift and thrills. It’s more fuel-efficient than the official numbers might suggest and fun to toss about. With an enticingly low sticker price (starting at just over $14,000), it’s more slot car than shoe box.

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40 MPG Cars: 2001-2013

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While fuel efficiency might seem like the latest craze, we’ve been tuned into it for years. 40 MPG cars are nothing new. Other sources may be content to simply throw up a photograph and a paragraph or two about any given economy car. We take the time to put hundreds and hundreds of miles on each and every odometer. We test for real-world fuel-efficiency with a light-footed driving style … because mileage matters.

Link to YouTube 40 MPG Car Review Playlist.

Check out our playlist of 40 MPG Car Reviews!

Through comprehensive testing, we’ve found that a number of cars are capable of exceeding their highway fuel efficiency ratings when driven conscientiously. Some cars rated in the high 30 MPG range can eclipse the 40 MPG mark. It’s all in the way you drive. Over the last few years, we’ve tested a range of 40 MPG (highway) cars, including:

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2011 Hyundai Elantra Review

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MPG-o-Matic 2011 Hyundai Elantra Review Summary:
The 2011 Hyundai Elantra is the value play in a crowded category, from its 100,000 mile powertrain warranty through a range of features not commonly found in most compact cars. With 40 miles per gallon (MPG) highway the new norm for the class, it takes more than just mileage to compete in the segment.

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How Does Ethanol Affect Gas Mileage?

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You don’t have to go far to hear folks complaining about how the current level of ethanol content in unleaded gasoline has affected the gas mileage in their vehicles. Today’s gasoline contains approximately ten percent ethanol, for the most part, and is referred to as E10. Finding “ethanol-free” gasoline at a common service station has become increasingly rare, at best.

Ethanol contains approximately 33 percent less energy than gasoline. If you were to run 100 percent ethanol (E100) in your vehicle, you’d expect to take a 33% hit to gas mileage.* (Theoretically, since you can’t legally run 100% ethanol.) With E10, it’s a 3.33% penalty. Seeing that you can’t buy E0, there’s not much you can do about it.

At some point, we hope to perform dyno and real-world tests to document the drop in gas mileage. With “pure” pump gas nearly impossible to find nearby, we may need to buy expensive street-legal racing fuel.

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