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fuel-efficient cars
High-Mileage Cars
Despite financial chaos in the auto industry, major auto companies have rushed smaller, more efficient cars to market. Part of the reason is that they need to make up for sales lost in the collapse of
the market for SUVs; part of the reason is that they can get government loans to retool for production of efficient cars. Here’s a brief review of significant new models arriving in dealer showrooms
right now or in a few months. — SETH MASIA
OUT NOW: 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid
Ford has shipped the first of its 2010 Fusion
Hybrids to dealers, stealing a march on the next
generation of high-mileage hybrids and plug-ins.
According to early reviews, the Fusion H is a winner, with fuel mileage roughly 30 percent better
than its look-alike competition, the Toyota Camry
Hybrid and the Nissan Altima Hybrid ( Toyota and
Nissan share their power train design). At a base
price of $27,995, the Ford costs about $1,200
more than the Japanese four-doors. But with
estimated gas mileage of 41 miles per gallon
city and 36 mpg highway, and with gasoline at
$2 per gallon, you’d earn the price difference
back in about 6,000 miles. Nice feature: With a
full charge, the Fusion can accelerate to 47 mph
before the gas engine starts. ford.com
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DUE IN APRIL: 2010 Honda Insight
In April, look for the 2010 Honda Insight, designed to be the world’s most affordable hybrid at a
base price near $20,000. Styled like a downsized Toyota Prius, the Insight is really a downsized Civic
Hybrid, with a smaller engine (1.3 liter), smaller electric motor and smaller battery pack. Target mileage will be 40 mpg city and 43 mpg highway. Properly, the car is a “mild hybrid,” meaning that the car
never accelerates on electric power alone. The gas engine shuts down when you brake to a halt, but
when the car moves, the gas engine turns (though fuel flow stops when coasting). honda.com
DUE IN MAY:
2010 Toyota Prius
Toyota has reengineered its
benchmark Prius, and the new
version, with a base price of about
$23,000, targets 50 mpg in combined city and highway driving
— roughly a 10 percent improvement over the 2009 model. To get
there, the new model uses a larger
gas engine with more torque. The
new engine turns more slowly and
has no friction-making belt-driven
accessories. The water pump, for
instance, is electric. The car can
run up to a mile on battery power
alone. A plug-in (PHEV) version is
said to be coming late in the summer but will be available only to
fleet operators for at least a year.
toyota.com
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