As everyone knows gas keeps getting more expensive everyday.
Thinking of trading in for a 4 cylinder car that hopefully does not use premium gasoline. Since some of you do more research on cars than myself, what would be the three cars you would suggest? Hope to hear from you soon.

Thanks so much.. K

 

More important, is are you just trying to save gas and/or want something sporty? Answer that and there are different cars that will fit the bill.

 

It's going to be really hard trading in my Acura TL for something smaller. I love the car and actually looking forward to the 2009 TL. But at the same time, would like to save $$ on gas and spend it somewhere else. We will see what happens. Have not seen the new TSX since is what my husband had suggested. Does it also use premium gasoline?
I'll be doing some howework this weekend on what car I might trade it in for.
Thanks..K

 

honda accord should do the trick then

 

Well, if it's just you and the hubby, try a new Honda Civic. They get good mileage, the car is much bigger than it seems, and you'll have a reliable car for a lot of years. Obviously you can get a smaller car, but space seems to be important.

http://automobiles.honda.com/civic-sedan/

Or, an alternative (once again, assuming it's just two of you) would be a Volvo C30

http://www.volvocars.com/us/models/c...s/default.aspx

Just my

 

How poorly does the Tl do, mpg wise?

You may simply try and extend the range you get now. Stepping into a lower vehicle may only net you a couple mpg.

Check out some of the suggestions on www.gassavers.org

I was able to get my PT from 20mpg to 24-25 mpg by remembering some of the tips they suggest. Its mostly your driving habits though: speed, keeping the rpms low, etc. Any car you get will have to be driven appropriately for gains to be seen.

 

All Acuras use premium fuel...

I've thought about getting a more fuel efficient vehicle, but with me only driving 13K miles a year the savings are negligible. I'm a cheap bastard, but I'm not going to give up my CLS 6spd for a Fit or Civic just to save $800 a year...

Do the math, you might be suprised at how little money you'll save in the course of a year... Most people don't even calculate the savings before they start researching a more fuel efficient vehicle.

Here's a template for figuring out the potential savings...

My CLS: 13K (miles per year) @ 22mpg equals 590 gallons of gas. 590 times $3.69 (price of premium) is $2177.10 (total fuel costs for a year).

Civic or Fit: 13K (miles per year) @ 35mpg (estimated) equals 371 gallons of gas. 371 times $3.49 (price of regular) is $1294.79 (total fuel costs for a year).

So for me, the savings would be $882.31... not enough for me to want to buy a new car to replace the one I have paid off... and I'm a notorious cheap bastard.

Now if you drive 25K-50K miles a year or drive a car that gets less then 20mpg, that's another story, but on average people generally drive 12.5K miles per year... and most acuras get over 22 mpg.

If you're worried about $800 a year in fuel costs, you probably shouldn't be driving a luxury car in the first place

 

Three cars I'd suggest ?? Yaris, Fit, Civic, Corolla, Mazda 3... oh wait, that's 5

 

Honestly, you'd probably be better served by just driving your TL until it dies. That would save you more money than trading it in and having to spend more money on a new car. Then, after your TL dies, you can get something more fuel efficient.

With that said, if you are set on trading it in and really want to save money, you should buy a cheaper car like a Civic or Corolla. The TSX is a nice car and will provide you with most of the features of your TL, and it gets decent mileage, but not anything worth trading in a TL for. Plus, it uses premium gas.

 

^ Depends on your city/highway driving. My wife is stuck with mainly city driving and she's lucky to get 21-22 mpg with her TSX. She'd probably be better off getting a Civic or a Corolla. The Corolla she had was fantastic on gas but was very spartan in comparison (cloth seats, unstable on a windy day during highway driving, crappy stereo, basic features).

And as Greenie already mentioned, the cost to get out of a car may not be worth the expense of buying a more efficient car (ie depreciation). A friend wanted to trade in their 2003 Jeep Liberty at a local dealership for a more fuel efficient car. She was offered $4800 for the trade-in. Looking over on Autotrader, a similar Jeep with similar miles was asking $12,500 (dealer)! The MSRP of the vehicle in 2003 (in Canada) was $32k. What a joke.

 

Fit, Yaris, Miata

Yes, Miata wants premium, but will run on anything. Also, as mpg goes up, the incremental cost of running premium vs. regular becomes less significant.

So a car that gets 30+ mpg, but requires prem is not such a big deal.

Using a variation of GM's math

13K (miles per year) @35mpg equals 371 gallons of gas. 371 times $3.69 (price of premium) is $1369 (total fuel costs for a year).

13K (miles per year) @ 35mpg (estimated) equals 371 gallons of gas. 371 times $3.49 (price of regular) is $1294.79 (total fuel costs for a year).

Now we're only talking $74 per year difference.

 

Yup, I was going to say the same thing ... Even if you increase that number to 20k a year it's just not that big a difference. Now, if you take 20k and +10mpg and -$.20/gal for regular then we might be seeing something ...

20k (miles per year) @ 28mpg = 714 gals * $3.69 = $2635 a year.
20k (miles per year) @ 38mpg = 526 gals * $3.49 = $1836 a year.

$800 a year is about $70/mo ... The only way the switch would make any sense is to buy used. Otherwise the depreciation would far outweigh any gas savings.

I still think $70/mo isn't worth it when you figure in the sales tax for the new(er) car and everything else that goes along with the switch.

She hasn't told us how many miles she drives but unless it's 40k a year, I don't see this being a smart move to switch.