The wife and I have been looking at slightly larger vehicles... and I have noticed that most owners post significantly lower fuel economy figures for small SUVs than the EPA ratings. If you look at compact cars, most people report getting similar numbers to the EPA's highway ratings. The new EPA testing procedure is supposed to take higher speeds and AC use into account, but it seems like they are producing unusually high numbers for small SUVs. I don't know why that is, but it is disappointing.
My car is rated at 26/33 MPG and my lifetime average is 37 MPG. I regularly hit 40+ MPG, but I also tow trailers... so that tends to drop it down. I have never gotten lower than 30 MPG until my last tank (first tank with the Scamp)... I got 26.8 MPG towing the
Scamp, but that was all local driving and included a lot of stops. I hope to get a little better out on the highway, but only time will tell.
The GMC Terrain caught my attention with their 33 MPG claim (EPA's claim, not GMC's)... but I would like to rent one for a week and see what I actually get before we seriously consider buying one.