The Best Gas Mileage SUV On The Market Right Now Is?
Posted by Admin at 27 December 2010, at 17 : 12 PM
This article reviews SUVs with the best gas mileage. SUVs are Sport Utility Vehicles and some say that their increased popularity is adding to the increase of fuel prices. SUVs are not the most economic vehicles but hybrid technology is about to change all that and the evidence are here already. Ford Escape Hybrid, Lexus RX 400, Honda CR-V 2WD, Mercury Mariner Hybrid 4WD, Toyota Highlander Hybrid 2WD are some of the best gas mileage SUVs you will find on the auto-market at the moment.
Let’s start with regular models that fit into the average standard SUV definition, without any hybrid technology. ConsumerSearch.com points out that the best SUV you can get with a decent balance between gas mileage and quality is the Honda Pilot, which averages around 20 mpg between highway and city driving. The general rule is that for the year 2010/11, you should look for a SUV that does 20 mpg on a highway and just below it for in-the-city driving. The Subaru Forester is also a reasonable choice in this category as it can get up to 28 mpg on the highway and stays above 20 mpg even in the city.
Ford Escape Hybrid is powered by an Atkinson-Cycle 2.3-liter 4-cylinder engine combined with a 70-kilowatt electric motor. The combined power of both engines is 155 horsepower. The 2007 Ford Escape Hybrid adds four new packages and three new exterior colors. A special appearance package features body-color door handles, silver bumper covers and body-side cladding and wheel lip moldings. This SUV gets about 36 miles per gallon.
Ford didn’t want to start from scratch so they used a lot from the previous Escape model so on the outside it’s really hard to make a difference apart from the Hybrid logo on the new model. As it’s pointed out at howstuffworks.com, the 2007 Ford Escape Hybrid functions just like a regular SUV.
The electric motor and batteries are supposed to operate for the life of the vehicle without maintenance. Electric motors are good at generating torque at lower rpm ranges so the electric motor comes to life when you press the Ignition button, then it powers the gasoline engine. Checks are made and if everything is okay, the car automatically switches to electric motor until at about 25 mph when the gasoline engine starts back up.
If you are in heavy traffic, you could go all day just on electric power. The Regenerative Braking function transform the kinetic energy produced whenever you hit the brakes into electric energy to restore the power of the batteries. In other words, every red light will recharge your batteries. To maximize the power of regenerative braking, it’s important to stop smoothly and gradually.
The Lexus RX 400h combines powerful acceleration, luxury appointments, all-wheel drive with a fuel-sipping hybrid power train. The basic price is $49,185. The driving force here comes from Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive technology, which lets the car run on either gas, electric, or both power sources. Power surges from a 208-horsepower 3.3-liter V-6 gasoline engine, and since this is an all-wheel-drive vehicle, the engine gets help from not one but two electric motors (front and rear).