Can anyone suggest a hatchback that gets 40+ mpg?

[hans007]

Maybe they should only sell TDIs then because every VW I've ever dealt with was an unreliable piece of shit and because of those experiences I'd never buy another VW as long as I live.

I had an Audi a couple years back.

Nothing minor ever broke on it. Just you know injectors and the exhaust system failed and the cylinders were poorly designed so they burned a quart of oil every 800 miles or so and would have required an engine block replacement soon according to Audi forums online. So yeah with vw products only the important stuff breaks. Great interior would never buy a vw again.

This was on an ea888 engine the engine in almost every car they make and in the latest golf / jetta / a3 and if you Google ea888 oil burn youll see vw/Audi are awful about this compared to any other turbo 4 engine on the market.

The TDI are reputed to be better as diesels generally are more reliable industry wide. Still vw can't ve trusted. They provably are well on their way to destroying Porsche.

 

[bryanl]

you really can't compare whatever you were getting anecdotally to the EPA sticker of a much newer car. you probably can do better if you are just cruising.

like i drive a 328i. the sticker says 33mpg fwy. if i drive without traffic at 70mph i can easily get like 37-38.

EPA numbers tend to understate freeway economy and overstate city economy.

 

[Wreckem]

I had an Audi a couple years back.

Nothing minor ever broke on it. Just you know injectors and the exhaust system failed and the cylinders were poorly designed so they burned a quart of oil every 800 miles or so and would have required an engine block replacement soon according to Audi forums online. So yeah with vw products only the important stuff breaks. Great interior would never buy a vw again.

This was on an ea888 engine the engine in almost every car they make and in the latest golf / jetta / a3 and if you Google ea888 oil burn youll see vw/Audi are awful about this compared to any other turbo 4 engine on the market.

The TDI are reputed to be better as diesels generally are more reliable industry wide. Still vw can't ve trusted. They provably are well on their way to destroying Porsche.

They are since on their 3rd gen ea888. These are in 2014s onward. They are supposed to be better in respect to the oil issue. The problem with vws are it's just completely hit or miss. Some people have a lot sorts of problems and others have none.

The previous gen TDIs have had their own issues, namely HPFP issues. Hopefully these issues are fixed with the most recent gen tdi's.

 

[GunsMadeAmericaFree]

Thanks for the ideas, everyone! It seems that I'm not the only one thinking about this sort of thing. Now I have a few makes/models to put on my short list of vehicles to take a closer look at over the next few months, as we figure out what would work out best for her as a commuter car.

I didn't understand the changes in the EPA ratings that you mentioned prior to this - it sounds like they have made the ratings more realistic so they can't be "gamed". Plus, I hadn't considered that they might have added more weight to the cars so that they would be safer.

 

[HeXen]

Honda Fit

I have a Fit and it doesn't get anywhere near 40mpg. Driving carefully around town I only get 29 and 33 on highway.

 

[dbk]

yup had a Fit and also didn't get anything close... has to be a hybrid

 

[Kelvrick]

I have a Fit and it doesn't get anywhere near 40mpg. Driving carefully around town I only get 29 and 33 on highway.

That is the type of experience that I tend to hear. I don't know what kind of miracle fit MiataNC bought.

A friend of mine bought one (I think 2007 or 2008) and promptly sold it a few months later. He said he could deal with no power, but no power and no economy was a deal breaker.

 

[Mide]

Had an 09 Fit. Got 34mpg in mixed driving, but 80% highway. If I were on a straight, flat stretch with no AC I could get 40mpg but it was rare.

The car was fun in city driving but highway was very noisy, interior cloth and paint deteriorated quickly from use, and driving with AC on = one very slow car.

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

22k miles on a 2013 fit here. Driving mostly city I've never gotten below 30 and when I had a 60 mile hwy commute to work I was averaging about 34.

 

[heymrdj]

2014 Fiesta SE Hatchback, 6K on it now. I average (in this warmer weather) 33 city, 45.2 highway (65mph), 35.1 combined (most of my driving is city). No matter how hard I romp on this thing it doesn't seem to care in regards to the mileage. I do have the 6 speed PowerShift DCT, not the manual. In the winter (and it was from 1-4K miles during the winter, so break in has a bit to do with it) I average 29.5 city, 37 highway, 32.1 combined. That did include the fact I have remote start (Ford OEM Remote Start 100 Series) as well as heated seats that started with remote start, so that didn't help my winter averages at all.

 

[HeXen]

That is the type of experience that I tend to hear. I don't know what kind of miracle fit MiataNC bought.

A friend of mine bought one (I think 2007 or 2008) and promptly sold it a few months later. He said he could deal with no power, but no power and no economy was a deal breaker.

It's been a while since I had a powerful car but the 2012 fit seems pretty peppy for a four cylinder. Just that the gas mileage hasn't ever improved despite it's a 5 speed auto. In the winter I get much worse gas mileage but of course I idle it to warm it up.
I suppose for the price I would buy one again, it's very reliable and I have successfully hauled water heaters in box, two 55" inch TV's in box and even a treadmill in box. I have to say you can haul some crap in that trunk which along with Honda's reliability are the only two main reasons I purchased it. Other than that it's a noisy, bumpy riding car.

 

[gus6464]

Anyone have the new Versa hatchback. I keep seeing ads for brand new selling for $10k.

This^

The new Versa Note is mighty close to 10k for a brand new car.

 

[Fenixgoon]

jetta tdi sportwagon?

 

[bryanl]

I have a Fit and it doesn't get anywhere near 40mpg. Driving carefully around town I only get 29 and 33 on highway.

I'm going to make the perfectly reasonable request that you provide more details of your driving, such as a graph similar to this:

29 is too high for city, 33 too low for highway, unless you drive at 3 AM and are very good at anticipating green lights or you go 75 MPH on the freeway with the A/C running and a dog strapped to the roof. A nonhybrid gasoline powered vehicle will typically have an approximately 2:1 ratio for highway:city economy.

 

[MiataNC]

This^

The new Versa Note is mighty close to 10k for a brand new car.

The Nissan Versa (and Versa Note) are penalty boxes. They are the cheapest cars sold in America, and they never let you forget it from the moment you open the door.

After an extended test drive, I would buy anything else 3-5 years used (Certified Pre-Owned or with an extended warranty) before getting a Versa.

 

[heymrdj]

The Nissan Versa (and Versa Note) are penalty boxes. They are the cheapest cars sold in America, and they never let you forget it from the moment you open the door.

After an extended test drive, I would buy anything else 3-5 years used (Certified Pre-Owned or with an extended warranty) before getting a Versa.

Pretty much this. The car was so bad on paper that when I was at the dealership I didn't even bother to test drive it.

 

[desy]

OK I owned a 07 Versa Hatch for 5 yrs the only reasonable competitor at that time was the Fit
Much better on the HW than a Fit cause its a larger car and quieter which is 80% of our driving
It doesn't get posted numbers, none of them do, I avged about 32, however its HUGE inside there is more room in the back there for the kids than my current Altima which was another of the main drivers I had bought it.
It had a chain and not a timing belt which lowers your maint costs considerably, don't know if that's still true. Had it 100kmiles zero repairs after warranty, had a body control module replaced under warranty, regular maintenance only
I'd look at it for sure as basic in-expensive reliable transportation
However I'll say again I'd buy a used Focus for 8G and pocket 2G nothing beats a good deal on NA car depreciation in the used market for a good compact car

 

[PlayCrackTheSky]

I'm going to make the perfectly reasonable request that you provide more details of your driving, such as a graph similar to this:

29 is too high for city, 33 too low for highway, unless you drive at 3 AM and are very good at anticipating green lights or you go 75 MPH on the freeway with the A/C running and a dog strapped to the roof. A nonhybrid gasoline powered vehicle will typically have an approximately 2:1 ratio for highway:city economy.

Maybe years ago, but this isn't the case with newer vehicles and CVT's.

 

[exar333]

Find the cheapest, lowest mileage TDI from VW on a well-cared for vehicle. You can get a <8 years old and <100k miles that has been cared for decently if you look around. You can easily find them for less than $10k.

My wife is getting the new EA288 TDI engine (Beetle) at the end of this year. It looks fantastic...