Old, Cheap Non-Hybrids That Get Shockingly Good Mileage

The way gas prices have been going, you might be looking into a more fuel-efficient vehicle. Hybrid cars have been achieving some impressive gas mileage ratings, but they can be expensive, which defeats the purpose of getting a fuel-efficient car in the first place. Fortunately, there are some relatively affordable used cars that can get some stellar gas mileage, exceeding 40 and even 50 miles per gallon (mpg), despite being neither hybrids nor electric vehicles (EVs).

For example, the 2019 Mitsubishi Mirage G4 has been rated at 41 mpg on the highway, and you just may be able to find one that is still covered by its drivetrain warranty. If you're happy running something more than 30 years old, the 1994 Geo Metro XFI can get a mind-blowing 52 mpg on the highway and 43 in town, while the 1991 Honda Civic CRX HF gets close to those figures with a 47 highway mpg and 40 in the city. While those in search of something more modern might prefer the 2014 Toyota Corolla LE Eco, which will get you 30/40 in city/highway mpg. 

The 2014 Chevy Cruze, meanwhile, came with two trims that could get you over 40 miles per gallon. One was the Cruze Eco, sporting a gas-driven that was rated at 40 mpg on the highway. The other was the diesel version of the Eco that was rated with a 42 highway mpg. Prices, of course, vary by model, condition, and the miles on the odometer, but they should be significantly cheaper than say, a new Prius. And new cars under $20,000 are few and far between.

In 2019, Mitsubishi proudly touted the Mirage as the "most fuel efficient, gasoline-powered vehicle in America." It had reason to brag, with the EPA rating the Mirage's gas mileage as 43 mpg on the highway and 36 in the city. It seems to have accomplished that the old-fashioned way, with a small engine. Under the hood of the Mirage was a modest 1.2-liter three-cylinder power plant. The Mirage was a hatchback, but it also came in a sedan version called the Mirage G4. The G4 had the same engine as the hatchback version and was almost as fuel-efficient at 41 mpg on the highway.

It may have not had much under the hood, but the Mirage wasn't just some spartan econo-box. It had such amenities as a seven-inch touchscreen, Bluetooth, and a rearview camera. It also claimed to have the most rear legroom and total legroom in its class. That's not bad for a car that was so economical. The EPA estimated at the time that the Mirage would cost an owner around $900 a year to operate. That includes gas.

We don't know what to tell you about the price if you're inclined to pick one up. The ones we've seen for sale vary widely. We've seen them offered for anywhere between $5,000 to almost $15,000. The good news is these cars came with a 10-year/100,000 mile powertrain limited warranty. That means you could likely find one that stilled covered for the powertrain.

Ah, the Geo Metro. The tiny car with outlandishly good gas mileage. We're talking about 52 miles per gallon on the highway and 43 in the city for the five-speed manual XFI trim. We would have liked to have given a shout out to the former Geo and its parent company GM for competing with Japanese automakers in the fuel efficiency arena. But it turns out the Geo Metro was actually a rebadged Suzuki Cultus (otherwise known as Swift). It figures.

This car was built for drivers who were zeroed in on making fewer trips to the gas pump, and not much else. With a three-cylinder engine that could barely eek out 52 hp, this little car was not built for power. We personally know former Geo Metro owners who tell stories about having to shut off the air conditioner just to pass a semi on the highway. And when we say it was little, we mean we've seen clowns pile out of bigger cars at the circus. It came in a hatchback version that somehow had only 10 cubic feet of luggage space. But none of that mattered to drivers who were ecstatic about all of that gas money they were saving.

As you can imagine, a car that is over 30 years old can be hard to find. But if you do find a Geo Metro from the early 1990s, you have a good chance of getting it for around $5,000 or even less.

The Honda Civic CRX HF was no joke when it came to gas mileage. It was rated by the EPA at 40 mpg in the city and a very impressive 47 on the highway. According to the EPA, one driver claims to have gotten 67.8 mpg with their Civic CRX HF. But that's nothing. One driver tweaked his Civic CRX HF enough to reach 118 miles per gallon at a fuel economy rally in New York.

The Civic CRX was fitted with a 1.5-Liter four-cylinder engine that, by some accounts, was not a huge source of power, especially when accelerating from a stop. Rust could also be a problem, especially in certain climates. The short profile of the car had its disadvantages, too, and you'd definitely have to watch your head getting in and out of the car. Sound insulation wasn't the most advanced, so you could expect a lot of road noise, but even so, drivers often enjoyed how the car handled, especially around twists and turns. Some even liked the absence of power steering. Other aspects enjoyed by owners included the generous cargo space and how easy it was to get in and out of parking spaces.

J.D. Power says that average retail for a 1991 Honda Civic CRX HF is $2,100. We think you should expect to pay a little more that that for one in decent condition, judging from the listings we've seen, these cars go for anywhere between $6,700 and $15,999.

Would it even make sense to post a list like this and not include the Toyota Corolla? This is probably the first car that comes to most people's minds when talking about affordable cars with good gas mileage. In fact, Consumer Reports named the 2019 model one of the best used cars under $20,000. The Corolla routinely gets mpg ratings in the high 30s, yet the Corolla upped its gas mileage game in 2014 when the Eco versions came out, pushing highway gas mileage over 40 mpg. The Eco LE trim had the highest ratings at 30 mpg in town and 42 on the highway.

The difference between the Eco trims and the other versions of the Corolla was the addition of the Eco driving mode. When engaged, this mode "controls" (blunts) acceleration and air conditioning to save power. These trims were also equipped with the CVTi-S transmission, which Toyota credits with improvements in Corolla gas mileage. Some of the other trims equipped with this transmission get 38 mpg on the highway.

If you're in the market for a 2014 Toyota Corolla LE Eco, expect to pay around $10,000 to $12,000, judging from the listings we found. Most of those cars either have six-digit odometer mileage or are close. But, you know, a Corolla is just getting broken in at 100,000 miles.

In 2011, Chevy replaced its rather forgettable Cobalt with the Cruze, a fuel-efficient compact meant to compete with the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic. In the arena of gas mileage, at least, Chevy showed an American automaker could compete. The manual version of the Eco trim is rated 40 mpg on the highway and 28 in the city. Online automotive magazine The Motley Fool tested the Cruze Eco and was able to get nearly 58 mpg out of the engine on the highway. Then, in 2014, Chevy offered a diesel trim that was rated at 42 mpg on the highway and 27 in the city.

Commuters no doubt enjoyed the Cruze Eco's fuel economy, but the car's design was boring as all get-out. There was nothing that stood about the design, other than the fact that it looked like every other car out there. Still, a review by Cars.com praised the interior, which, it noted, did not look cheap despite the low sticker price. Though some elements seemed "dated", it had an overall "modern look and feel." It has its fans, including one of our writers, who called the Cruze "the perfect car."

If you are in the market for a Chevy Cruze Eco, you can probably find one for between $5,000 and $10,000. From what we could see, the diesels are a little harder to find. But the ones we saw were listed in the mid to high $8,000s.