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It's good to see I'm not the only one who cares about MPG. Anyway, I drive two cars, a 1998 Chevrolet Cavalier automatic and a 1979 Porsche 928 5-speed. The 928 is an all-out fun machine that provides tons of fun per gallon, so I'm not concerned with its fuel economy at all. It's not a daily driver.

The Cavalier I use for my commute to school, and also for work where I deliver pizza. It's EPA rated 23/31 which seems terrible for a small 4cyl coupe, but I can regularly beat the EPA numbers. While delivering pizza today, I managed 29.5 mpg and with pure highway driving, I pulled 43.5mpg earlier this week. I've pretty much gave up on the EPA being accurate with their testing. I blow the doors off the EPA's numbers, but other cars like the Corolla seem to be overrated. I'm looking to buy another car since my sister is taking the Cavalier to college, and I think I'll probably end up buying another Cavalier in 5 speed.

I respect all you guys for buying hybrids, but they just don't make sense for me. Even delivering pizza, I'd never recover the cost. Since I still live with my parents, fuel is my single largest expense at ~$250/mo so I'm always looking for new ways to keep more money in my pocket.

wow i bet you can hypermile the porche if you really tried....

yeah if you can trade in for a 5spd, that will be the first step.

Welcome Specter!

Sounds like you're a very good driver! You've discoverd how driving habits severely effect fuel economy- something 99.9% other drivers haven't figured out.

The constant starting, stopping, starting again delivering Pizza is going to be rough on MPG and commend you beating EPA anyway.

I think Phil has a good point in that you could do the same in the Porche, but still have the acceleration rate you want. Save some money!

In any account welcome to the community :)

Welcome to CleanMPG!

Welcome, and have you looked at this article?

http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=665

Thanks for the link, now you've got me looking at TDI's. I've always been opposed to all VW's because many of their owners hate them and they seem like overpriced, unreliable pieces of junk. Also, TDI owners say the motor is a nightmare to the weekend mechanic and special equipment and fluids are needed to keep it going. I can usually pull 30/41 out of my car with plain old 87 octane gasoline, so I'm hesitant about the TDI.

Yeah TDI's reliability is questionable but if you can get one cheap that lasts a few years it may not matter. There are also a few other cars on the list.

Welcome to the Forum.

Good_luck on your Hunt for the right Vehicle. :)

Terry