Please help me choose a fuel efficient car

Hello Paul, I currently own a Toyota with an I6 1G engine. I am looking to switch to a fuel efficient car and I am contemplating a small car (Vitz, Fit, Runx, Belta) or a diesel powered Benz (2003-07 C class or E class cdi). Which one should I go for? Kumbi.

Hello Kumbi, the best super fuel saver cars on your list are the Toyota Vitz and Honda Fit. The Vitz tops the list with its 1.0 litre petrol engine, which will give you about  24 km/litre with combined driving in the city and on the highway. The 1.3 litre Honda Fit will give you a fuel economy of about 16 to18 km/litre on the highway.

These fuel statistics are dynamic and can be alterred or influenced by driving style (aggressive or gentle), car service or tuning condition as well as tyre condition. It is worth noting that on the highway, the Toyota RunX with a bigger 1.5 litre engine could post the same fuel statistics as the smaller 1.3 litre engine. Drivers of the 1.5 litre RunX do not need to drive in the fuel costlier high revs such as the smaller Vitz and Fit, to keep up with highway speed.

On the other hand, a bigger more, powerful 2.2 litre diesel engine Mercedes will give you about 16 km/litre. However, a used diesel Mercedes becomes more costly to maintain if it has had a poor maintenance history or has mileage hovering around 100,000kms. This erodes the benefits of fuel saving and excellent performance.

In order to decide which car to buy, look at the pros and cons of each of the models holistically and not with the general presumption that the smaller the engine the better the fuel economy. Useful considerations include passenger space, trunk space, ground clearance and nature of journeys. For example, a frequent highway traveller needs a stronger car engine. Otherwise, you will get anxious to reach home and end up driving more aggressively.