It's The Gas, Gas, Gas

As gas prices show little sign of dropping, "great gas mileage" may have moved up on your new-car wish list. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the Honda Insight and the Toyota Prius are among the best fuel misers, getting 45 to 68 miles per gallon.

But who wants to be nagged into buying a boring econo-box that offends your artistic sensibilities? While sports cars, luxury sedans, coupes and most convertibles gobble up gas at an average of 20 miles per gallon, below are some nifty, relatively low-mileage beauties you won't feel guilty driving but that can give your image an edge. They all get close to 30 miles per gallon:

Buick Park Avenue sedan
Chevrolet Cavalier convertible
Chrysler 300M sedan
Dodge Intrepid
Pontiac Sunfire convertible
Suzuki Swift wagon
Toyota Celica coupe
Toyota MR2 convertible
Volkswagen Cabrio
Volkswagen New Beetle

		You can get even better mileage from your car if you: buy gas with the correct octane rating for your vehicle. keep tires properly inflated. accelerate smoothly-don't mash that throttle. close the windows against wind resistance and use the air conditioner on the highway. drive at speeds of 35 to 55 miles per hour. don't let a cold engine idle for more than 30 seconds after starting up.

Jill Amadio has reported on the automotive industry for 24 years as an editor and consultant.

This article was originally published in the April 2001 print edition of Entrepreneur with the headline: It's The Gas, Gas, Gas.