Top 10 Most Fuel-Efficient Luxury Cars
The most fuel-efficient luxury cars sold in the United States aren't homegrown — they're imported.
Europe and Japan lead the fuel-economy crusade for the luxury sector, in part because economic conditions in those regions have given local automakers major incentives to develop cars that conserve fuel while still providing amenities that luxury shoppers crave.
“European automakers have had to be conscious of fuel economy for decades,” says Mike Omotoso, senior manager of global powertrain forecasting for J.D. Power and Associates in Westlake Village, Calif. “In Europe, high-tech includes good performance coupled with good fuel economy."
Seven of the top 10 most fuel-efficient luxury cars sold in the U.S. come from European manufacturers. Most are versions of models developed for Europe, where high gas prices (due to high taxes on fuel) make efficiency a higher priority than it is in the U.S., Omotoso says. Japanese luxury-car companies Acura and Lexus make the remaining three models on our list.
The most fuel-efficient luxury car available in the U.S. at the time this article was published is heavier than most of its peers on this list, which seems counterintuitive. The diesel-powered Mercedes-Benz E320 Bluetec sedan weighs nearly two tons, yet returns 23 miles per gallon in city driving and 32 mpg on the highway, according to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates. Only the Lexus GS 450h, number four on the list, is heavier, despite being a bit smaller than the Mercedes. That’s because the Lexus is a hybrid, which means it’s saddled with extra equipment like an electric drive motor and a heavy battery pack.
Most of the other luxury leaders in fuel efficiency are automotive athletes. The Porsche Boxster and Cayman share the ninth slot. The Acura TSX, Audi A4, and Lexus IS 250, all top contenders, are sporty sedans. The Audi TT, at number two, is a sprightly two-door offered as a coupe and convertible. Even the two hatchbacks on the list, the Audi A3 and Volvo C30, are quick and nimble.
These sporty models use smaller engines with either four, five, or six cylinders to optimize fuel efficiency. But they don’t compromise performance thanks to technology like computerized throttle control, direct fuel injection, and variable valve timing. The Volvo C30 and Audi models also use turbochargers to make more horsepower without having to increase engine size.
Recent introductions of small, lower-priced premium cars like the Audi A3 and Volvo C30 represent luxury automakers’ efforts to capture young buyers, says John Wolkonowicz, senior North American automotive analyst for Boston-based Global Insight. “They're bringing them to capture Gen-Y,” which consists of people born between 1978 and 1994. “They're going to be a major force in the auto market, because they're as large in number as the Baby Boomers.”
Members of Generation Y don't approach luxury goods as distant, future rewards. Their demand for immediate gratification creates an immediate opportunity for luxury automakers, Wolkonowicz says. To seize that opportunity, automakers will have to pay closer attention to fuel economy. Industry observers agree that buyers in the luxury segment may be more insulated from high fuel prices than the average consumer. But their concern with status and personal image could draw them to eco-friendly technology, which is hot right now.
“Appearing to be socially conscious is becoming more important,” Wolkonowicz says. “It may become unfashionable to drive a gas guzzler.”
Luxury car makers have taken notice. “Fuel economy was not on the radar screen of the luxury buyer in the past. Now, for some — not all — luxury buyers, it is in the mix to a degree,” says Cadillac spokesman David Caldwell. “But the addition of fuel economy as a consideration does not reduce the importance of all the other aspects of desirability that go into a luxury purchase. It is added to a long list, along with power, performance, quietness, technology, comfort, capability.”
At Cadillac, one strategy has been to improve the performance of six-cylinder engines to make them more desirable. Though they are potent in their own right, when it comes to performance and prestige, six-cylinder engines usually get dwarfed by eight-, 10-, and 12-cylinder engines offered on luxury cars.
The 3.6-liter V6 in the 2008 Cadillac STS sedan uses a special fuel-delivery system so that it can produce 302 horsepower, only 18 hp less than the company’s 4.6-liter V8. Yet the V6 gets an estimated 17 miles per gallon in the city and 26 mpg on the highway, which is 2 mpg better than the V8 on both counts.
“Technology on our 3.6-liter V6 has boosted the desirability of the engine significantly,” Caldwell says. “So sticking with the base engine does not represent as much of a sacrifice as it did in prior eras.”
Similarly, German automakers are beginning this year to offer in the U.S. advanced diesel engines first developed for Europe. They’re not only 20 to 30 percent more fuel efficient than equivalent gasoline engines, but they are hot performers too.
Audi will introduce a 3.0-liter six-cylinder diesel engine on the Q7 SUV late in 2008, followed by a diesel option in a new version of the company’s largest sedan, the A8. Audi says the diesel Q7 will travel more than 600 miles on a tank of diesel fuel. “There's a convenience in simply not having to fuel up as often, and time saved is a luxury in and of itself," says Audi spokesperson Andrew Lipman.
Rival Mercedes is already seeing demand skyrocket for its own diesel models, which currently include the chart-topping E320 Bluetec, as well as the GL-Class, ML-Class, and R-Class, which made our list of the top 10 most fuel efficient luxury SUVs.
“If I had more of them sitting here, I could sell more,” says Rich Fulfs, Internet sales manager at Mercedes-Benz of Orland Park, a Chicago-area dealership. “I get probably as many inquiries on the diesels as I do on gas cars.”
To identify the 10 most fuel-efficient luxury cars currently available in the U.S., we used the ratings published in the EPA's 2008 Fuel Economy Guide. We ranked luxury cars according to combined city/highway mileage using a formula provided by the EPA and carrying out the calculations to two decimal points.
Certain models come in different body styles and with different transmissions or drive types (four-wheel versus two-wheel), all of which affect fuel economy. In those instances, we averaged the fuel-economy figures for the various models offered.
