These put some of the high MPG cars of today to shame.


Crosley Hot Shot — 48 mpg
BMW Isetta — 44 mpg
Honda S800 — 42 mpg
Fiat 850 Spider — 38.5 mpg
Lotus Elite — 38 mpg
Nash Metropolitan — 37.5 mpg
Austin-Healey Sprite — 36 mpg
Morris Minor — 35 mpg
MG Midget — 35 mpg
Fiat X1/9 — 34 mpg


http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2012/04/ ... p=features

All the crash protection makes new cars heavier.

Another thing is that those cars listed were TINY little cars. The fact that some modern full-size cars that easily weigh 4 and 5 times anything on that list are getting more than 40MPG is pretty impressive.

Actually - a few on the list were quite safe...... particularly the Fiats and the MG..... it's hard to be involved in a highway fatality when your car is dead in the driveway and won't start.....

Fiat 850 they rust.A few nice cars there.New Fiat 596 should do good MPG.Honda 800s not many around now days ,have seen Honda 600s tho. Sprman

Now, that was funny.

I think those numbers are MPR (miles per repair) rather than MPG.

Not too many (any) of them that I would take on a California Freeway unless I was ready to depart the Planet.

I do love the look of those Nash Metro's however.

what kind of mileage did the pinto get?

Our 24 model t coupe gets 20.

Yet some of the 50's V-8's could do 20+ on the highway without babying it and with a lot more weight and cubes than what passes for a full size car today that doesnt do much better. And those oldies were all "inefficient" RWD.

The Hudson Jet, HenryJ/Allstate, Aero Willys and Rambler were all light weight econo boxes of the 50's but I havent looked for Tom Cahils test mpg.

Carl

That reminds me, I've got to get to work on my wife's Nash Metropolitan. We've never kept track of the gas mileage. Most people don't know that they were built by Austin, so they're no more reliable than an MG- just slower!

Best one I've heard all day...

Tom

My first new car was a 1976 Gold VW Beetle, with factory electronic fuel injection. Easily cruised at 70 mph and got 40 MPG. Wish I still had it

My first car was a 1963 MG Midget. You could practically park it
under a semi trailer. And it was light enough, when a buddy and
I would get too far into a bush trail, we could wrap rags around
the bumpers and manually turn it around.
Most fun I ever had, driving the orchard roads around Kelowna
BC back in the day.
Nelson

None of the cars listed in the op would come close to passing emission standards. I haven't seen an Urkel mobile in years, wonder if they have all been squashed?

My 97 LeSabre gets a solid 30 mph on the highway and is a reasonable size car. I recently rented a Nissan Altima that got 35 mpg, had good performance, and was also a reasonable size.

RRM

I'm not a stranger to those little old cars. Morris Minor, and MG Midget come to mind.
Whew! I would have serious irritation after an hour in one.

I do confess that I would like one of those old Volvos that were shaped a little like a
40 Ford 2DR sedan. Wouldn't take one to either coast and back though.

Pre smog control cars weren't that bad. (Pre 68.) My ragtop Chevelle was a parts and
grocery getter for years. Barely broke idle on a trip to town. Has an electric pump I can
switch off at will. Allowed for some comparisons and perspective. Didn't use much fuel
at all, unless I was eating road and tires. I hope to get her back up this summer.

Mileage is one element, but the joy of motoring is quite another thing. Most any old car
can bring back the joy in some of us.

I always kind of liked those too, but you would need to learn how to reconstitute iron oxide to get one around here. Haven't seen one in years. They all dissolved.

RRM

Ah yes, the PV444.....1943-1958


or the PV544...1958-1966


According to Wikipedia...

Studebaker's little Lark got surprising good mileage and the 8 was almost as good as the 6. With overdrive, 25 mpg easy and can carry 5 easy or 6 in a pinch.

Worst car I ever had was an 850 Spider. FIAT= Fix It Again, Tony. MG Midgets are fun cars but it's a little unnerving looking at the lug nuts of the vehicle next to you at a stop light and if your over 6' tall, forget it.

Early Toyota Corollas, Datsun 510's, and Honda Civics were good for 30+ mpg easy.

I've owned 5 VW beetles. The one with the Bradley GT body got about 35 mpg. The best one, with a stock body, got 31 mpg on the road (a 1960 36 hp), most were 25-27 mpg. 40 mpg, maybe if you never drove over 40.

Remember too, that the way gas mileage was calculated back then was different than it is today. No car I ever owned from the 60's or 70's got even close to its advertised gas mileage. My VW beetles usually got in the mid 20's, which was considered excellent. You should also compare the performance levels. Most of the cars advertising good mileage were pathetically slow.

except a 1959 Stude Lark VIII, 259 V-8 with OD. Pretty quick actually and mine got consistently 27 mpg + at 60 mph. They always did very well in the Mobil Economy Runs that were common then. I would have kept it longer but it rusted into oblivion.