Hi BillyT1963:

___It was a well written all the way to the point of comparing a mini-compact Mini-Cooper to a mid-sized Passat

___I wish they would have included a more up to date and complete CR’s FE testing list. I still have the one linked below from a while ago but it doesn’t include the latest Prius II which was discussed in the article with a combined of 44 mpg … or the HCH for that matter.

Provided by Consumer Reports.org
Most Fuel-efficient vehicles by category

___In defense of Hybrid’s the following might help absolve them of some of the controversy …

Hybrid’s:

04 Prius II (51/60 - 55.5 combined) received 44 mpg overall (not listed in the table linked above). This is 79% of its EPA combined.

03 Prius I (45/52 - 48.5 combined) received 41 mpg overall which is 85% of its EPA combined.

03 Insight Manual (60/66 - 63 combined) received 51 mpg overall which is 81% of its EPA combined.

Non-Hybrid’s:

03 Honda Accord Auto (SI-ICE - 24/33 - 28.5 combined) received 24 mpg overall which is 84% of its combined.

03 VW Jetta TDI Auto (Diesel - 34/45 - 39.5 combined) received 32 mpg overall which is 81% of its combined.

___I could use many more std. ICE’s as listed but I don’t have all day In any case, 2 - 3% either way is well within any single test experiments variability so it appears to me as if all of the vehicles listed above are relatively close in terms of a similar percentage of EPA estimates overall vs. real world combined expectations according to CR’s relatively repeatable FE testing scenarios.

___Good Luck

___Wayne R. Gerdes
___Hunt Club Farms Landscaping Ltd.
___Waynegerdes@earthlink.net