Which SUV Leases Give you the Best Gas Mileage?
Nissan Rogue Gas Mileage
Back in January of this year, I posted one article on the Best Gas Mileage Cars to lease, then another one titled, SUV Car Lease Specials. An unfair stereotype of SUV drivers exists in America that they don't care about fuel economy. This is simply not true. Driving anything other than an SUV is simply not a viable option for many of us. SUV's are the only vehicles that take care of three, simultaneous needs:
- Hauling Passengers
- Hauling Cargo
- Driving up icy and snowy roads in the winter
Obviously, because SUVs are bigger, heavier and many are equipped with All Wheel Drive (AWD), they tend to consume more gas. That doesn't mean SUV drivers don't value fuel thrifty automobiles. Though Fuel Economy is a luxury we'd all like to have, some of us are not willing to give up our SUVs, even if we do pay more at the pump...and even if we get frowned at by the that twirpy little Prius driver at the Car Wash. It would seem Un-American to sacrifice the activities and life style made possible by vehicles that suit our active lifestyles. Why can't we have SUVs that haul people, cargo, go up steep icy roads AND get reasonable MPG? There is always a compromise, isn't there. There is one thing that High Gas Mileage Cars and SUVs have in common: They don't always offer the best lease payment. Grant it, there are some fine, fuel efficient, 4-Cylinder cars with excellent lease values such as the Toyota Corolla. But, if you want the very latest technology in fuel efficiency, Hybrid Cars generally don't have the best lease payments. This is mainly due to the fact that the resale value of Hybrids is greatly diminished by the extra cost and unknown life of the battery. Those wishing to lease SUVs face the same double edged sword, but for different reasons. The resale value of SUVs took a big hit with the increase in gas prices and economic slump over the last three years. The poor fuel economy and gas mileage isn't all bad news for SUV owners. SUV Gas Mileage is as critical as the payment. Of the 10 automobiles listed in my Top-10 SUVs listed below, many of them get very similar gas mileage. Most of the 4-Cyl SUVs, like the Toyota RAV-4 and Honda CR-V are rated at 21 MPG City and 27 MPG Highway. One surprising fact is that moving up to a bigger, more powerful V6 engine doesn't drastically hurt the MPG of the SUV. For instance, the very powerful, BMW X5 xDrive 35D is rated a very respectable 19 and 26 MPG City/Highway. SUVs with FWD instead of AWD do get slightly better gas mileage. For this review, I've decided to include AWD SUV Leasing only. SUV Gas Mileage is ranked from 1 to 10 based on Gas Mileage and LVR (lease value ratio)
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