You've undoubtedly heard the term 'design-by-committee' (usually in a negative context), but when's the last time you heard someone say 'design-by-survey?' A British online buying guide called New Car Net (www.newcarnet.co.uk) spent two months searching for the ideal car by asking motorists to choose elements of existing vehicles they liked best. The categories included body shapes, engine power, safety features and accessories.

Judge for yourself as the image above is an artist's rendition of the resulting exterior which combines the front of a Porsche Boxster, the stretched roof-line of a Jaguar XK and the wheels of the U.K. Toyota Avensis.

Of particular interest to us are the answers received in the category of powertrain. Nearly 50 percent chose a diesel or hybrid powerplant over a standard gas-fueled engine while half opted for a "medium-powered engine" over a gas-guzzler.

Of course, we're happy to see survey results in which such a large percentage of respondents choose higher-mileage over power, but the most impressive point we'd like to underscore in this survey is that this is what drivers chose as their ideal car. Also, it's important keep in mind that this was a British survey where the gas is much more expensive and diesels are much more widely accepted. Still, it makes you wonder just how much longer they'll be saying, "there's just no substitute for displacement" on this side of the Atlantic.

[Source: New Car Net]