They said it couldn't be done. Now they're proving themselves wrong.

For years, auto executives--especially those from Detroit--insisted it wasn't possible to build high-mileage cars at reasonable prices that Americans would want to drive. Thrifty drivers were stuck with weezy econoboxes like the Ford Escort or Chevy Cavalier, designed not to delight drivers but to raise the automakers' fleetwide fuel economy, assuage regulators, and compensate for gas-guzzling SUVs. Early hybrids from Toyota and Honda upped the ante, with mpg in the 40s and 50s, but their high mileage required tradeoffs that produced a mediocre driving experience, at best.


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But over the last few years, automakers have kicked their engineering departments into high gear, and they're starting to turn out some truly fun cars that get eye-popping mileage. It's not happening by accident. New gas-mileage requirements passed by both the Bush and Obama administrations are forcing automakers to either downsize their cars or come up with technology that will dramatically boost mileage. The carmakers are doing both. Most of them now build hybrids, which J.D. Power estimates will comprise a sizeable 8.6 percent of the market by 2015. And many automakers will soon be rolling out electric vehicles that can be charged more cheaply from a receptacle at home. But other types of technology are pushing mileage higher for traditional gas-powered engines, with less complexity than a hybrid or electric, lower costs, and practically no driving tradeoffs. Here are some of the vehicles proving that cars can be cool and thrifty at the same time: Volkswagen Golf TDI (Starting price, $22,354; 30 mpg city/42 mpg highway) Hyundai Sonata ($19,195; 22 city/35 highway) Ford Mustang ($22,145; 19 city/31 highway) Chevy Equinox ($22,615; 22 city/32 highway) Mini Cooper ($19,500; 28 city/37 highway) Hyundai Elantra ($14,145; 26 city/35 highway) Ford Fiesta ($13,320; 29 city/38 highway) BMW 335d ($43,950; 23 city/36 highway) Mercedes-Benz ML350 Blue-Tec ($49,700; 18 city/25 highway) Honda Accord, 4-cylinder ($21,055; 21 city/31 highway) Hit the source link for an explanation of each car. Source: 10 Reasons You Don't Need a Hybrid Rate this story Rating: 1 ... Bad 2 ... Not the best 3 ... Average 4 ... Good 5 ... Awesome « First Drive: Autoblog Drives the 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee · 10 Reasons You Don't Need a Hybrid · Bad Cop: Officer blocked us from ER during bride's stroke [Video] » Post New Comment Your Name: Subject: Icon:                                     Message: Disable smilies in this post. Disable block tag code. Add [url] tag at URLs. Powered by Contentteller® Business Edition