Autoblog Green

Since the Smart ForTwo launched in the U.S. last year it has actually sold better than expected. That comes in spite of a relatively high price and moderate fuel efficiency for its diminutive size. However if you really want mileage commensurate with size, the 72 mpg CDi would be the one to have. (Click on the image to continue).

Porsche is about to begin sales of its first-ever diesel road vehicle, the Cayenne. Unfortunately, there are no plans to bring the Cayenne diesel to the U.S., despite the fact that the powertrain is the same VW 3.0L V6 TDI used in the Touareg and Q7. The Cayenne could certainly use 25 mpg.

The Volvo XC60 is just arriving in the U.S. market but only with a gasoline-fueled engine. Europeans can pick the five cylinder diesel and get 31 mpg out of this mid-size crossover.

BMW's 1-series is only available with gasoline six cylinder engines in the U.S. market. We can't even get the four cylinder gas option. Europeans can get the 1-series with four different variants of the 2.0L four cylinder diesel, from the storming 123d down to the 53 mpg 116d

The new Ford Fiesta will be coming to North America at the end of this year, but we'll only be getting the 1.6L gas engine to start. It is still expected to hit the 40 mpg threshold but Europeans can also opt for the super-thrifty ecoNetic version that is optimized to get nearly 64 mpg!

We already get the European Accord sedan badged as the Acura TSX, but we have to miss out on the sharp looking wagon. Now we also have to miss out on the new diesel version that Honda had planned to introduce this year. So much for a 40 mpg Accord or TSX.

Volkswagen introduced a swoopy coupe-like version of its mid-sized Passat, dubbed the CC, last year. As usual, Americans get a choice of ... wait for it ... gasoline engines with four or six cylinders. Europeans meanwhile can opt for the 2.0L TDI as seen in the Jetta that gets 42 mpg.

Jaguar just introduced a redesigned 3.0L diesel V6 for the XF. With this engine, the XF gets 35 mpg and out-accelerats the current 4.2L gasoline V8.

Only European buyers of the Chrysler Grand Voyager (aka Town and Country) get the option of a diesel engine. In this case, its a 2.8L four cylinder that lets the Chrysler get over 25 mpg combined, something families that need a van could certainly appreciate.

Finally, we have the MINI Cooper D. We actually drove one of these last summer and the torquey little diesel was deemed a winner, especially combined with the MINI's go-kart handling. We drove it hard and managed 47 mpg without trying. More sedate driving can yield 60 mpg with the auto-start stop system helping out.