# Fuel efficient car **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Created:** [November 5, 2007, 2:34pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-efficient-car/6876 "2007-11-05T14:34:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![nancyberault](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@nancyberault](https://community.cartalk.com/u/nancyberault)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2007, 2:34pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-efficient-car/6876/1 "2007-11-05T14:34:49Z")
I am currently driving a paid for (it’s best quality) 2000 Ecilpse (black). I drive four miles to work and five miles home accounting for errands and the gym. I will probably buy a more expensive model used the next time I buy. Mostly, I have become the little old lady whose life has a four mile radius, except on week ends. I don’t care if the car is hybrid or just a very efficient compact. I do want a sedan. Sorry this is just boring question. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2007, 11:34pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-efficient-car/6876/2 "2007-11-05T23:34:59Z")
Pick up a Consumer Reports Used Car Preview at the local bookstore. It’ll give you lots of good info on used cars. You’ll then need to troll your local marketplace for those that look good to you. ---
**Author:** ![mcparadise](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/mcparadise/32/32_2.png) [@mcparadise](https://community.cartalk.com/u/mcparadise)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2007, 1:14am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-efficient-car/6876/3 "2007-11-06T01:14:55Z")
A Toyota Corolla or Honda Civic would serve you well. Both are extremely reliable and very fuel-efficient. For the driving you do, a hybrid in unnecessary, and its higher initial cost would never be paid back. Stick with a conventional compact sedan. Once a month you should take your car for a 25-30 minute drive, which will allow it to warm up fully. The short trips you currently drive are not the best thing for a car. ---
**Author:** ![Docnick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Docnick](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Docnick)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2007, 1:34am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-efficient-car/6876/4 "2007-11-06T01:34:23Z")
Agree; take it out on the highway and enjoy the scenery while blowing out the cobwebs. Cars are like people; they get bunged up wihout some exercise. Take your car to the GYM on the interstate! If you buy a new car, buy one with the smallest standard engine. Any of the above mentioned will do. Just avoid any Volkswagen, they can be bad news. Your type of driving works best with a small engine that warms up quickly. ---
**Author:** ![Kendahl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Kendahl](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Kendahl)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2007, 6:11pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-efficient-car/6876/5 "2007-11-06T18:11:11Z")
You should look at small Hondas and Toyotas such as the Civic, Fit and Corolla. If you can get a good bargain on it and it passes an inspection by a good mechanic, consider used ones up to three years old. Don’t waste your money on dealer “protection” packages. As others have suggested, you should take the car out on the highway for a longer drive every few weeks. The kind of daily driving you do wears a car all out of proportion to the distance. Your owner’s manual will specify both a distance and time schedule for oil changes. You drive so little that you should be governed by the time even if this means changing your oil every few hundred miles. ---
**Author:** ![Beadsandbeads](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c57346/32.png) [@Beadsandbeads](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Beadsandbeads)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2007, 6:53pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-efficient-car/6876/6 "2007-11-06T18:53:31Z")
10 miles/day 5 days a week 50 weeks/year is only 2,.500 miles per year. At 35 mpg and $3/gallon that is about $215. At 20 mpg your cost will be $375. Why is fuel efficiency at the top of your criteria? Do you drive a lot on weekends? Reliability, comfort, pleasant color, well, everything else should be higher if you don?t. ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2007, 7:33pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-efficient-car/6876/7 "2007-11-06T19:33:19Z")
If it’s paid for and running well…why not keep it?