WASHINGTON, Oct. 9 (UPI) -- At an average 61 miles per gallon, the gas-electric Honda Insight gained the top spot Tuesday in the Environmental Protection Agency's and the Department of Energy's 27th annual ranking fuel-efficiency ratings.
Four models earned perfect 10s as the cleanest running vehicles: the Insight, Honda Accord, Nissan Sentra and the hybrid Toyota Prius. At the bottom of the list were 17 models earning zeros, including the Cadillac Escalade, three Chevrolet, four Dodge Ram, two Ford, three GMC and two Toyota models, plus the Lexus LX 470 and Winnebago.
"Fuel-efficient vehicles come in all shapes and sizes. Consumers do not have to sacrifice to make a difference for the environment," said EPA Administrator Christie Whitman.
The EPA and Energy Department evaluated fuel economy, greenhouse gas emissions and estimated annual fuel costs in making its comparisons.
For the 2002 model year, the two-seat Insight, a hybrid gas-electric two-seat coupe, earned a score of 10, the highest possible rating. The Insight got 61 miles per gallon city and 68 miles per gallon highway mileage with a manual transmission, and 57 city/56 highway with an automatic.
Other models getting the best mileage were the hybrid Prius, 52 mpg city and 45 mpg highway; three diesel Volkswagen models with manual transmissions -- the Jetta Wagon, New Beetle and Golf diesel -- each getting 42 mpg city and 49 or 50 mpg highway; Honda Civic with manual transmission, 42 mpg city and 49 mpg highway, and with automatic transmission, 36 mpg city and 44 mpg highway.
"Reducing our nation's dependence on imported oil is crucial to our national energy security now more than ever before," Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said. "Conserving fuel by driving a more efficient vehicle is one way each of us can do our part."
The Lamborghini L-147 Murcielago had the worst mileage, 9 mpg city and 13 mpg highway, followed by the Ferrari 360 Modena/spider with automatic transmission, 10 mpg city and 16 mpg highway, and the Dodge Ram 1500 Pickup with four-wheel drive, 11 mpg city and 15 mpg highway.
Among mid-size vehicles, the Mazda 626 and Honda Accord earned the best gas mileage, 26 mpg city and 32 mpg highway.
The Chevrolet Impala got the best mileage for large cars, 21 mpg city and 32 mpg highway, while the luxury Bentley Arnage LWB got the worst, 11 mpg city and 16 mpg highway.
The small Toyota RAV4 2WD sport-ute got the best mileage among sport-utility vehicles, 25 mpg city and 31 mpg highway, while the SUVs with the lowest mileage included the Cadillac Escalade, GMC K1500 Yukon Denali AWD and XL AWD, and the Land Rover Range Rover, all getting 12 mpg city and 15 mpg highway.
