These hot rods get good mileage too

It doesn’t take a market research maven to determine that with gas prices still hovering around the $4.00 mark, fuel economy remains of paramount importance among new-car buyers. But what if your vehicular preferences run more toward the fast and the furious — can a true sports car be both entertaining to drive and fuel efficient?

The answer, surprisingly, is yes.

While the sports car market is still populated with plenty of gas-guzzlers, there are a number of models — some of which are among the quickest rides on the road — that boast downright decent fuel economy.

Take, for example, the 2013 Porsche 911 Carrera S, which can leap to 60 mph in just 4.1 seconds, yet is rated by the Environmental Protection Agency to achieve an estimated 20 mpg around town and 27 mpg on the open road. While that’s not exactly Toyota Prius territory, it’s far more respectable than such notorious fuel swillers as the Aston Martin V12 Vantage and Lamborghini Aventador, each of which gets a combustible 11/17-mpg city/highway.

And while it could be said that anyone who’s able to afford a costly sports car could well absorb sky-high gasoline prices, consider the environmental effects of choosing a “greener” alternative. According to the EPA’s figures, the aforementioned 911 Carrera S will burn an average 10.3 fewer barrels of oil and spew 4.6 fewer tons of greenhouse-gas emissions annually than will either the comparably performing Lambo or Aston Martin. Such emissions include carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane, which are said to be major contributors to global warming. (For fuel economy and emissions ratings for all vehicles, check the EPA’s website.)

We sorted through both the EPA’s official fuel economy ratings and posted 0-60 mph times for all sport coupes/convertibles sold in the U.S. to compile a formidable list of ten models that can reach 60 mph in well under six seconds, yet achieve an estimated combined city/highway fuel economy of 22 mpg or better. These include fleet-footed models like the Porsche 911, Boxster and Cayman, the Lotus Evora, Nissan 370Z, Audi TT, Mercedes-Benz SLK, Hyundai Genesis Coupe, Infiniti G37 and an unexpectedly frugal version of the venerable Ford Mustang.

While most of these cars offer the choice of either a standard stick shift or an automatic transmission, you’ll note that many models achieve their quickest 0-60 mph times and top fuel economy ratings with the latter, particularly if it’s a sophisticated dual-clutch automated manual gearbox. While such racecar-inspired transmissions can be operated by hand for a quasi-manual effect, in fully automatic mode they typically shift faster and more precisely than most humans could muster.

One caveat, however. The EPA’s ratings are based on standardized tests conducted under strictly controlled conditions on a dynamometer, which is like a treadmill for cars. Out in the real world lead-footed motorists will likely never achieve any of these models’ lofty estimates. The EPA cautions that “aggressive” driving (i.e. the manner for which sports cars are built) can reduce a vehicle’s gas mileage by as much as 33 percent at highway speeds and by 5 percent in the city. As they say, your mileage may vary.

Given that corporate average fuel economy regulations here and in Europe are scheduled to rise significantly in the coming years, expect sports-car builders to pay added attention to their models’ mileage down the road. This will likely include expanded use of lighter-weight materials like aluminum and carbon fiber; all else being equal, decreasing a vehicle’s mass by 10 percent enables about a three percent increase in fuel economy. Expect widespread use of technology like direct fuel injection and turbocharging to help make smaller engines perform like larger ones, as well as a so-called stop-start function that automatically de-powers an engine while the car is at idle to save fuel.

We’ll also be seeing more hybrid, plug-in hybrid and all-electric sports cars in subsequent model years. The recently discontinued Tesla Roadster proved that a battery-powered sports car could maintain top performance (0-60 mph in around four seconds) and use no gasoline at all. Porsche is currently testing a plug-in hybrid 918 Spyder “supercar” it plans to introduce in the fourth quarter of 2013. While it’s expected to break the bank at a reported $845,000, Porsche says the 918 Spyder will boast the equivalent of over 770 horsepower and get around 78 mpg (three liters per 100 km).

Now that’s really fast and frugal.

© 2012 Forbes.com

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You can feel safe in these top-rated small cars

The good news is that traffic fatalities are at historic lows, thanks in large part to increasingly sophisticated auto designs, advanced safety features and stricter seatbelt and DUI laws. The bad news is auto crashes still accounted for 32,788 deaths in 2010, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which means a vehicle-related fatality occurs an average of once every 16 minutes. Motor vehicle collisions remain the leading cause of death for individuals between the ages of three and 34.

Choosing the safest auto available is particularly important when shopping for a small car, where every advantage is essential. That’s because the laws of physics dictate that, all else being equal, a smaller and lighter vehicle will tend to fare worse in a crash than will a larger and heavier model. Buying the most massive model on a dealer’s lot is not an option for many motorists, whether they’re cash-strapped, are looking for a more fuel-efficient vehicle to save money at the pump or have modest needs and prefer to drive a smaller car. Compact and subcompact cars are on pace to outsell midsize entries for the first time in nearly two decades according to sales projections from J.D. Power and Associates.

Trying to project which of the burgeoning selection of otherwise excellent small cars on the market will do the best job of protecting its occupants in a crash – and perhaps even help prevent a collision altogether – is no easy task.

We started out by consulting the 2012 model-year list of “Top Safety Picks” from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a non-profit organization funded by the insurance industry. These included a record 31 mid-priced and luxury small cars. “For the second year running a record number of models qualify as Top Safety Picks,” says IIHS president Adrian Lund. “It’s tough to win, and we commend auto manufacturers for making safety a top priority.”

To qualify, a car must garner top scores across the board for performance in front, side, rollover, and rear-end crashes based on ratings determined by the IIHS’ evaluations. Vehicles are rated in each category on a basis of “good,” “acceptable,” “marginal” or “poor” performance.

For testing a car’s crashworthiness in a frontal collision, the IIHS performs “offset barrier” tests at 40 mph, using average-size male test dummies. Here, only part of a vehicle’s front end hits a deformable barrier, which simulates the front of another vehicle. This test is said to provide a good indication of how well a vehicle’s structure will be maintained in a crash to protect its occupants, particularly against injuries to the lower extremities.

The IIHS’ side-impact test approximates the front end of a full-size pickup truck or SUV striking the passenger’s side of a vehicle at 31 mph. The potential for injuries are measured using smaller dummies because IIHS data suggests that women are more likely than men to suffer serious head injuries in a side impact collision.

Rollover protection ratings are based on roof crush tests. To earn a “Good” rating here, a vehicle’s roof must be able to withstand a force of four times its own weight before reaching five inches of crush depth. The IIHS estimates that such roofs reduce the risk of serious and fatal injury in single-vehicle rollovers by about 50 percent compared with those that merely meet the federal minimum requirement for crush resistance.

While deaths from rear-end crashes are relatively low they’re one of the most common causes for whiplash-type neck injuries, which result from the sudden jerking forward of an occupant’s head and torso. The IIHS simulates rear-end collisions using a combination of static measurements and active crash-dummy testing to determine how well the vehicles’ seats and head rests support their occupants in a rear-end collision at 20 mph.

We further winnowed down the number of choices to the 10 models on our Safest Small Cars list by identifying the models that offer the most safety features to both help protect their occupants in a crash and help their drivers steer clear of collisions in the first place.

All cars are required to include airbags that inflate automatically and instantaneously to help protect front-seat occupants’ heads and chests in a frontal crash. What’s more, all the cars in our list include both chest-protecting seat-mounted side-impact airbags for front passengers and head-protecting side-curtain airbags that extend to outboard riders in both rows of seats. Many of the models in our list further include knee-height airbags that are designed to help reduce leg injuries for front seat occupants.

© 2012 Forbes.com

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These luxury cars have the highest theft rates

While some of the best-selling cars in the U.S. also top the most frequently stolen list each year because of their sheer numbers, another look at the statistics reveals which cars by percentage sold are the most likely to by targeted by thieves.

According to data recently released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the car most frequently stolen, based on the number of thefts per 1,000 vehicles sold during 2009, was the $92,000 Audi S8 sport/luxury sedan, with 8.81 thefts per 1,000 vehicles produced. That comes out to just two out of the 227 S8s that were sold in the U.S., so it’s hardly a widespread epidemic.

Still, NHTSA’s statistics prove the point that the flashiest cars on the road can also be the most popular — for the wrong reasons.

Forbes.com slideshow: Cars with the highest theft rates

The Ford Shelby Mustang GT had the next highest theft rate for 2009, with 8.61 vehicles per 1,000 stolen. Also in the top five were the sportiest variant of BMW’s midsize sedan, the M5 (7.58/1,000), retro-flavored Dodge Charger full-size sedan (6.47/1,000) and the no longer produced Honda S2000 roadster (5.60/1,000).

The remainder of the top 10 list of cars with the highest theft rates for 2009 included the midsize Mitsubishi Galant sedan (5.11/1,000), the full-size Chrysler 300 sedan (4.57/1,000), the Infiniti M luxury sedan (4.32/1,000) the Cadillac STS luxury sedan (4.28/1,000) and the Mercedes-Benz CL-Class luxury sport coupe (3.91/1,000).

By brand, the most frequently stolen cars per 1,000 sold, were Chrysler products, with the Chrysler Sebring, Sebring Convertible and PT Cruiser, and the Dodge Avenger and Dodge Caliber making the top 20 in addition to the aforementioned 300 and Charger.

General Motors came in second, with four vehicles among top 20, with the Pontiac G5 and G6 and Chevrolet Impala joining the STS.

While the Toyota Camry was the most purloined model overall in terms of sheer numbers, at 781 stolen in 2009, it ranked 50th as a percentage of sales at just 1.74 per 1,000 cars. The least-stolen model per capita in 2009 was the since-discontinued Mercury Mariner SUV, with a theft rate of 0.08 per 1,000 units, or a mere two vehicles out of 25,682 sold that year.

Fortunately, NHTSA reports that the number of auto thefts reported each year is on the decline. “The agency believes that the theft rate reduction could be the result of several factors including the increased use of standard antitheft devices, vehicle parts marking, increased and improved prosecution efforts by law enforcement organizations and increased public awareness,” according to a NHTSA statement.

So what can you do to ensure that thieves won’t target your vehicular pride and joy? Start by correcting bad habits, such as leaving the keys in the ignition when the vehicle is unattended. Keep the windows and sunroof closed, and don’t hide a spare key where an astute crook might find it.

If you have a garage, park inside it, not merely out on the driveway, and make sure both entry doors are closed and locked at all times. If you park on the street, choose a spot close to other vehicles, turn your wheels toward the curb and engage the emergency brake to make it more difficult to be towed. Away from home, park in a well-lit or well-traveled area after dark, and avoid using long-term parking lots–take a taxi to the airport instead.

Experts also advise having your car or truck’s vehicle identification number (often called a “VIN,” it’s found on the driver’s side of the dashboard at the bottom of the windshield, as well as on the model’s title) etched on the windshield and major components to make them more difficult for chop shops to sell as replacement parts.

Beyond the common-sense basics, use an antitheft device, which will often also warrant a discount on your car insurance. A steering-wheel lock like the popular “Club” is simple, inexpensive and can be as effective as costlier alarm systems. A thief wants to get a vehicle as quickly as possible, and anything that might slow him or her down can be enough of a deterrent to instead choose another model on the block. Having a simple ignition “kill switch” installed in a hidden location makes it more difficult for a crook to start a car or truck and drive it away.

Advanced vehicle recovery devices like LoJack and General Motors’ OnStar system use technology similar to that employed in satellite navigation systems to help police departments locate cars and trucks if they are stolen. They can be pricey and require a monthly subscription, but if you own an expensive high-profile car, the cost is usually warranted.

© 2011 Forbes.com

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