Fun at 40 mpg: Real-World Mileage Test with Chevy Cruze, Ford Focus, Hyundai Elantra, Mazda 3, VW Golf TDI

Forty is the new 30. What used to be an outlandishly thrifty consumption figure signifying the market's tiniest, most punishingly austere cars is now on window stickers everywhere. And what used to be the kiss of death—back when gas was two bucks a gallon and 40 highway mpg basically meant that you'd be having a bad time behind the wheel—is now marketing gold. Rising CAFE standards and volatile fuel prices have sparked many changes from the good old days, most of them for the better. Our biggest fear was that cars would get worse in direct proportion to their escalating mileage claims. The opposite is happening. With the help of the technology highlighted on these pages, the shackles binding performance to fuel economy are breaking. The five cars we've gathered here—nary a hybrid among them—demonstrate how effectively space, comfort, features, and, yes, even fun can square with fuel economy. Because if there's one thing the carmakers doing business in this country have learned, it's this: Americans don't want small, weird, fuel-efficient cars; they want roomy, desirable, fuel-efficient cars. (more…) from Car and Driver Blog http://blog.caranddriver.com

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