Automotive
The Most Fuel Efficient Cars From 1975 to Today
The Most Fuel Efficient Cars From 1975 to Today
When shopping for a new car, what is the most important factor you look for? According to Statista, it’s not design, quality, or even safety—it’s fuel efficiency.
Because of this, automakers are always looking for clever ways to improve gas mileage in their cars. Beating the competition by even the slimmest of margins can give valuable bragging rights within a segment.
In this infographic, we’ve used data from the EPA’s 2022 Automotive Trends Report to list off the most fuel efficient cars from 1975 to today.
Editor’s note: This is from a U.S. government agency, so the data shown skews towards cars sold in North America.
Data Overview
All of the information in the above infographic is listed in the table below. Data was only available in 5-year increments up until 2005, after which it switches to annual.
Model Year | Make | Model | Real World Fuel Economy (mpg) | Engine Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
1975 | Honda | Civic | 28.3 | Gas |
1980 | VW | Rabbit | 40.3 | Diesel |
1985 | Chevrolet | Sprint | 49.6 | Gas |
1990 | Geo | Metro | 53.4 | Gas |
1995 | Honda | Civic | 47.3 | Gas |
2000 | Honda | Insight | 57.4 | Hybrid |
2005 | Honda | Insight | 53.3 | Hybrid |
2006 | Honda | Insight | 53 | Hybrid |
2007 | Toyota | Prius | 46.2 | Hybrid |
2008 | Toyota | Prius | 46.2 | Hybrid |
2009 | Toyota | Prius | 46.2 | Hybrid |
2010 | Honda | FCX | 60.2 | FCEV |
2011 | BMW | Active E | 100.6 | EV |
2012 | Mitsubishi | i-MiEV | 109 | EV |
2013 | Toyota | iQ EV | 117 | EV |
2014 | BMW | i3 | 121.3 | EV |
2015 | BMW | i3 | 121.3 | EV |
2016 | BMW | i3 | 121.3 | EV |
2017 | Hyundai | Ioniq Electric | 132.6 | EV |
2018 | Hyundai | Ioniq Electric | 132.6 | EV |
2019 | Hyundai | Ioniq Electric | 132.6 | EV |
2020 | Tesla | 3 | 138.6 | EV |
2021 | Tesla | 3 | 139.1 | EV |
From this dataset, we can identify three distinct approaches to maximizing fuel efficiency.
Downsizing
Prior to 2000, the best way for automakers to achieve good fuel efficiency was by downsizing. Making cars smaller (lighter) meant they could also be fitted with very small engines.
For example, the 1985 Chevrolet Sprint was rated at 49.6 MPG, but had a sluggish 0-60 time of 15 seconds.
Hybrids
The 2000s saw the introduction of mass-market hybrid vehicles like the Honda Insight and Toyota Prius. By including a small battery to support the combustion engine, automakers could achieve good MPGs without sacrificing so heavily on size.
While the Insight achieved better fuel economy than the Prius, it was the latter that became synonymous with the term “hybrid”. This was largely due to the Prius’ more practical 4-door design.
The following table compares annual U.S. sales figures for both models. Insight sales have fluctuated drastically because Honda has produced the model in several short spans (1999-2006, 2009-2014, 2018-2022).
Year | Insight Sales | Prius Sales |
---|---|---|
2005 | 666 | 107,155 |
2006 | 722 | 106,971 |
2007 | 3 | 181,221 |
2008 | - | 158,884 |
2009 | 20,572 | 150,831 |
2010 | 20,962 | 140,928 |
2011 | 15,549 | 136,464 |
2012 | 6,619 | 236,655 |
2013 | 4,802 | 234,228 |
2014 | 3,965 | 207,372 |
2015 | 1,458 | 184,794 |
2016 | 67 | 136,629 |
2017 | 3 | 108,661 |
2018 | 12,513 | 87,590 |
2019 | 23,686 | 69,718 |
2020 | 15,932 | 43,525 |
2021 | 18,685 | 59,010 |
2022 | 7,628 | 33,352 |
Source: goodcarbadcar.net
The Prius may have dominated the hybrid market for a long time, but it too has run into troubles. Sales have been declining since 2014, even setting historic lows in recent years.
There are several reasons behind this trend, with one being a wider availability of hybrid models from other brands. We also can’t ignore the release of the Tesla Model 3, which began shipping to customers in 2017.
Electric Vehicles
We’re currently in the middle of a historic transition to electric vehicles. However, because EVs do not use fuel, the EPA had to develop a new system called MPGe (miles per gallon of gasoline-equivalent).
This new metric gives us the ability to compare the efficiency of EVs with traditional gas-powered cars. An underlying assumption of MPGe is that 33.7 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity is comparable to the energy content of a gallon of fuel.
The most fuel efficient car you can buy today is the 2023 Lucid Air, which achieves 140 MPGe. Close behind it is the 2023 Tesla Model 3 RWD, which is rated at 132 MPGe.
Check out this page to see the EPA’s top 10 most efficient vehicles for 2023.
Misc
Almost Every EV Stock is Down After Q1 2024
We compiled the performance of 10 pure play EV stocks into one chart, revealing one company that bucked the broader trend.
Almost Every EV Stock is Down After Q1 2024
This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
While the S&P 500 index climbed over 10% in Q1 2024, the majority of EV stocks declined by double digit percentages over the period.
This is surprising, given that EVs were once the hottest trend in tech (before artificial intelligence came around).
In this graphic, we’ve visualized the Q1 2024 performance of 10 prominent pure play EV companies. Pure play in this context means companies that only focus on electric vehicles.
EV Stock Performance
The data we used to create this graphic can be found in the table below. Note the two biggest outliers: Nikola (+24.9%) and Fisker (-98.7%).
Company | Q1 Price Change (%) |
---|---|
Nikola | +24.9 |
Li Auto | -12.5 |
Tesla | -29.2 |
VinFast | -29.5 |
Polestar | -30.3 |
Lucid | -31.3 |
XPeng | -45.3 |
Nio | -46.6 |
Rivian | -48.1 |
Fisker | -98.7 |
The majority of EV stocks have fallen due to slowing demand in major markets like the U.S. and China. This is a serious problem for startups like Rivian and Lucid, which are not yet profitable.
In fact, legacy automakers like Ford are looking to expand production of hybrid vehicles, which is likely causing many investors to avoid pure EV stocks.
Two Outliers Emerge
Nikola shares have rallied in recent weeks as the company reported positive momentum in its hydrogen fuel cell truck business. The company also opened its first hydrogen refueling station in Southern California, and has five more in the works.
On the flipside, Fisker Inc. has struggled enormously, even being delisted from the NYSE in late March 2024. Fisker Inc. is the successor to Fisker Automotive, which went bankrupt in 2013. Fisker Automotive was known for producing the Karma, a luxury EV sedan that competed with the Tesla Model S.
Back to today’s Fisker, the company is once again in hot water. Over 40,000 customers have cancelled reservations for the company’s “Ocean” electric SUV, which is currently under investigation for door malfunctions.
Other Major EV Developments
In other news, Tesla is once again the world’s best-selling EV company, after outselling China’s BYD by 87,000 units in Q1 2024.
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