5 hybrids with the best MPG in 2013

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I read an article online about gas prices, and in the comments section, a lady was reminiscing about when it only cost $1.50 a gallon. Could you imagine filling your tank up for less than twenty bucks? It almost seems like ancient history (and in fact, 2003 was the last time gas was round $1.59/gallon).

With prices dancing near the four dollar mark, now is certainly not the best time to own a gas guzzler, especially if the car you're driving is your daily vehicle that has to travel 40 or more miles round trip in a day. So what do you do if you want to get the absolute best efficiency possible out of your car? Consider switching to a hybrid.

The technology for all electric (also called "Plug-in") vehicles is still quite a ways off when it comes to achieving good mileage on a single battery charge, leaving hybrid vehicles as the most accessible choice. Whether you need something compact, or prefer a roomy and spacious ride, there's a hybrid for your needs!

Here are the five most efficient hybrids currently available, with most priced under $30K:

1. 2013 Toyota Prius C - 50 combined mpg (53 city/46 hwy)

This is Toyota's most efficient Prius on the market. It's smaller and lighter than the original Prius, with a body style similar to that of a Toyota Yaris. The base model of the Prius C is priced just over $19,000, making it the most affordable hybrid on the market.

2. 2013 Toyota Prius - 50 combined mpg (51 city/48 hwy)

Toyota's flagship hybrid, the original model Prius continues to remain on top, only beaten out slightly by its smaller cousin. The Prius is known for it's unique look and incredibly quiet driving experience. Compared to the C, it's slightly better for long trips on the highway, but not as efficient in traffic. The 2013 "Two" model is available for around $25,289.

3. 2013 Lincoln MKZ Hybrid - 45 mpg (45 city, 45 hwy)

Who would have ever guessed a luxury brand like Lincoln would have one of the more efficient cars on the market? The MKZ is priced around $36,800 and has a stylish exterior.

4. 2013 Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid - 45 mpg (42 city, 48 hwy)

The Jetta Hybrid is Volkswagen's second hybrid sold in the U.S., and the German automaker is trying hard to move away from being only known for selling efficient diesel vehicles. The Jetta Hybrid features a turbocharged engine and outputs 170 HP with a price tag of around $24,995.

5. 2013 Honda Insight - 42 mpg (41 city, 44 hwy)

The Insight gets praise for being one of the cheapest hybrids available, with a starting cost of around $18,600 for the most basic model. While the MPG numbers aren't as high as the Prius or Prius C in terms of  it's still a practical choice.

Do you drive any of these vehicles? What are your impressions of them? 

Love the Smell of Gasoline? You Might Change Your Mind

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What's your strange smell fascination? New car smell, gasoline, maybe Pine-Sol or permanent markers? What's bizarre to one person might be irresistible to another (and I'm definitely guilty of being addicted to new car smell...it's a shame that those car air fresheners you buy can never quite replicate the real deal!)

Well, here's some alternative fuel news that might surprise you, especially if you consider yourself someone who enjoys catching a whiff of gasoline every time you go to fill your tank. US Green Technology is reporting that Toyota is working closely with a few other organizations in Japan to create a hydrogen based fuel. Normally, that would be fairly irrelevant news since we've known about hydrogen as an alternative for awhile, but their plan to get the hydrogen is entirely different than what you'd ever expect.

Did the picture give it away? The goal of these scientists is to find a way to collect human waste, extract the hydrogen, and convert it into fuel. As Faith No More famously said, "It's a dirty job but someone's gotta do it!" The process works by heating and drying the waste, which releases methane. The methane is then trapped, collected, and heated again to create hydrogen in a process known as steam reforming. This kind of hydrogen can be produced with about 80% efficiency, meaning that it is definitely cleaner, as hard as that is to imagine, than processing traditional fossil fuels.

The hope among these companies is to have the technology perfected by 2015, with some sort of fuel-cell vehicle available from Toyota to test it out. Perhaps the prototype hydrogen vehicle that was shown off at the Geneva International Motor Show back in March, the FCV-R, could be among the first to try it. It'll definitely be interesting to see how something like this is marketed. What do you think an advertisement or commercial would be like?

Prius C: Your Class Valedictorian

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The report cards are in! Imagine for a second, if Consumer Reports was like a high school teacher, and all the different cars out there were the students. If that was the case, then the Prius C is like the popular quarterback this year who wowed everybody while holding a 4.0 grade average. The kind of student who did all of their extra credit and considered to be one of the popular kids. You know, the kind that would be likely to high five you if they saw you walking down the hallway.

Vague references aside, I'm referring to the Consumer Reports 2012 "Most Reliable New Cars" report, which gathered data from consumer's experiences with over a million different vehicles. The study was done to determine which vehicles were least likely to end up in a repair shop.  

End result? Toyota, Scion, and Lexus took the top spots for brand reliability, with their entire range of vehicles scoring "Average" or higher. The Prius C, Toyota's subcompact version of the original Prius model, was the star of the bunch, garnering the top overall reliability rating.

You can see the video here-

2013 Avalon: Toyota's Newest Green Machine

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Toyota is ready to celebrate. After all, it's been announced that they've retained the top spot as the "greenest global brand" in a 2012 study by marketing group Interbrand. Would you be surprised that the strength of their efforts lies primarily on the popularity of their hybrid vehicles, thanks in part to the Prius? No? Ok, moving on.

While they've certainly been known for their efforts in sustainability and lowering carbon dioxide emissions, Toyota has also been a pioneer in producing some of the most efficient hybrids on the market. They've helped to urge other automakers to follow suit by focusing on efficiency rather than size or power. When you consider some of the challenges they've faced over the past year, such as rebuilding their reputation after enduring a massive earthquake that affected vehicle availability worldwide, their old slogan "moving forward" is a great reminder of overcoming challenges.

Now, Toyota is looking to give a makeover and a green treatment to another vehicle in their lineup: the 2013 Avalon.

The 2013 Avalon was engineered at the Toyota Technical Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and will be made at the same manufacturing plant in Georgetown, Kentucky, where the Camry is produced.

First introduced at the New York Auto Show earlier in the spring, this large sedan in the Toyota family will be offered in a V6 version as well as a hybrid. The hybrid will get a combined EPA rating of 40 miles to the gallon in both city and highway driving. It will also be able to travel at speeds of up to 25 MPH on electric power alone! The Avalon features three different driving modes (Eco, Sport, and EV), that allow the driver to alter the performance of the vehicle to their specific preference. What else is new about the 2013 Avalon? About a hundred pounds (not a fat joke, I promise!)
In redesigning the vehicle, Toyota researched ways to make the vehicle lighter and more efficient. What's interesting is that this is not something you typically see on full sized cars, so shedding the extra weight actually helped the vehicle to be made into a hybrid.

Are you excited for the 2013 Avalon? What car in Toyota's lineup would you like to see get the hybrid treatment? Leave me a comment below or tweet to @LouFuszToyota !

Where Are the Greenest Drivers?

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When you think of cities where the greenest drivers tend to be, what comes to mind as your first inclination? If you guessed the Golden State, you'd be correct! A recent survey by Cars.com set out to find the areas where the most consumers were searching for hybrid and electric vehicles online. Here are the greenest (as well as the least eco-friendly) cities, according to the data that was found.

Cities with most searches for eco-friendly vehicles:
1. San Francisco, CA
2. Madison, WI
3. Monterey-Salinas, CA
4. Portland, OR
5. San Diego, CA
6. Green Bay, WI
7. Santa Barbara, CA
8. Sacramento, CA
9. Chico, CA
10. Zanesville, OH

Cities with least searches for eco-friendly vehicles:
1. Odessa, TX
2. Laredo, TX
3. Fairbanks, AK
4. Albany, GA
5. Bluefield, VA
6. Glendive, MT
7. Helena, MT
8. Colombus, AL
9. Casper-Riverton, WY
10. Baton Rouge, LA

The dominance of cities in California makes sense, given the fact that they have more charging stations for battery powered vehicles, and a more pro-active atittude towards environment preservation and recycling than any other state. What's interesting is the fact that 3 midwestern cities made the list!  I've certainly seen plenty of Prii (the "official" plural form of Prius, according to Toyota) driving around St. Louis, and was surprised to not see our fine city mentioned.

As for the least green cities - what's your take? Do you think the data makes sense (do folks in the Lone Star state really apply the "bigger is better" mentality to everything, including their cars? Could be why hybrids aren't as popular there!)

Would you nominate a different city to have a spot in one of these two lists instead?

Across the Country on 10 Gallons of Gas

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It sounds like a joke. Traveling 2,532 miles on only ten gallons of gas? But this professor is serious...and he's got the technology, prowess, and just enough crazy in his blood to do it!

Cliff Ricketts, a 63  year old professor of agricultural education at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, spent the past 34 years of his life researching alternative fuels. He announced his plans last week to travel from Georgia, to Long Beach, California. The idea stemmed from his fear of rising gas prices and the thought that if an oil crisis were to occur, people would need a backup option in case the price per gallon ramped up to $10 or more. As evidenced by my previous blog post back in January, the tell-tale signs are clear that gas isn't getting any cheaper!

Rickett's plan to drive this extraordinary distance is fueled, literally speaking, on the power of three specially equipped Toyota vehicles- a 1994 Tercer, and two Prii (the official plural form of Prius, according to Toyota!) 
Each of these vehicles is outfitted to run on a combination of compressed hydrogen, as well as solar power and an ethanol/gasoline mixture. Cliff would have used purely hydrogen, but could not secure all of the hydrogen tanks he needed in time for the trip.
He claims his motive is not so much an environmental message as it is a message on fuel efficiency. Now, flash forward and Cliff has done the unimaginable: he made it to his destination in not only record time but also using only two gallons of gasoline!

His cross country journey took five days, and spanned from Tybee Island, Georgia, to Tennessee, and then through Arkansas, and then all the way out west to Long Beach. The majority of the trip was done on Interstate 40, not to be confused with the highway 40 that we all know and love in St. Louis!

After reaching Long Beach, Cliff walked onto the beach and dipped his toes into the Pacific Ocean. "I feel like I climbed Mount Everest," he said. "This has significance in life and it has significance for mankind."

Has the rising cost of gas changed your perception on hybrids like the Prius C, or alternative fuel vehicles? Where would you travel to if you could road trip with such an efficient vehicle?