Fuel Sipping European Wagons - Biodiesel Vehicles - Vehicles - BioDieselNow

With fuel prices hovering near or passing $5 gallon these days, I thought it would be worthwhile to post an article touting the current models available in Europe. The fact that they have been paying similar or higher prices over there for many years makes it even more relevant to our current situation. The fact that some even allow for 7 passenger seating should allow an easy transition to all but those folks needing to pull large boats or construction equipment. The chart inset in this article lists the MPG's in the US testing cycle. ("If we build it they will come." - "If they bring it will we buy?") EPA standards notwithstanding!!

Fuel sipping station wagons sold in Europe

Posted Jun 16th 2008 8:44AM by Xavier Navarro

Do you have a small family and a dog? For many Europeans in that or a similar situation, station wagons are the ride of choice, despite the SUV and minivan craze. Buying a station wagon often means that you're buying a fuel efficient vehicle which can carry lots of stuff, and some of these vehicles can even seat seven. The key to an fuel-saving family hauler is finding that elusive combination of being compact in size, roomy inside and fitted to a efficient powertrain. Compact minivans, SUVs and CUVs sometimes fit these qualifications, as we discussed when we posed a list of European fuel saving people carriers. That list included some station wagons that seat seven, and today's list expands on that and shows the 20 most fuel-efficient station wagons on sale in Europe. Don't think all of them are made by European automakers. Find the full list after the jump.

Gallery: Fuel sipping european wagons 2008

Click on any name for a high-resolution image of the model. The table lists the engine power, trunk space with seats not folded down (both in liters and cubic inches), fuel consumption (in l/100 km and mpg U.S.) and CO₂ emissions in the EU highway cycle, if a Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) is fitted as standard, the number of ISOFIX safety child seats latches (as requested by our readers) as well as the car lengh in meters and inches.

Model	HP	Trunk Space	Consumption	CO₂emissions	DPF	ISOFIX latches	Car length
Skoda Octavia Combi 1.9 TDI Classic	105	580 l 20.48 ft³	5.1 l/100km 46 mpg	140	No	2	4.57 m 180.0 in
Peugeot 207 SW HDi FAP 90 Filou	90	337 l 11.90 ft³	5.0 l/100 km 47 mpg	136	Yes	2	4.16 m 167.8 in
Volvo V50 1.6D DPF	109	417 l 14.73 ft³	5.0 l/100 km 47 mpg	132	Yes	2	4.52 m 180.0 in
Skoda Fabia 1.9 TDI Sport	105	480 l 16.95 ft³	4.9 l/100 km 48 mpg	129	No	2	4.24 m 166.9 in
Kia cee'd Sporty Wagon 1.6 CRDi 90 EX DPF	90	534 l 18.86 ft³	4.9 l/100 km 48 mpg	128	Yes	2	4.47 m 176.0 in
Peugeot 308 SW HDi FAP 110 Filou*	109	573 l 20.24 ft³	4.9 l/100 km 48 mpg	128	Yes	2	4.50 m 177.2 in
Kia cee'd Sporty Wagon 1.6 CRDi 115 EX DPF	115	534 l 18.86 ft³	4.9 l/100 km 48 mpg	128	Yes	2	4.47 m 176.0 in
BMW 320d touring DPF	177	460 l 16.24 ft³	4.9 l/100 km 48 mpg	131	Yes	2	4.52 m 177.9 in
Hyunday i30cw 1.6 CRDi Classic DPF	116	415 l 14.66 ft³	4.9 l/100 km 48 mpg	128	Yes	2	4.47 m 176.0 in
BMW 318 d touring DPF	143	460 l 16.24 ft³	4.8 l/100 km 49 mpg	125	Yes	2	4.52 m 177.9 in
Renault Mégane Grandtour 1.5 dCi Authentique	86	520 l 18.36 ft³	4.7 l/100 km 50 mpg	117	No	2	4.50 m 177.2 in
Renault Clio Grandtour 1.5 dCi FAP Dynamique	103	439 l 15.50 ft³	4.7 l/100 km 50 mpg	123	Yes	2	4.20 m 165.3 in
Renault Mégane Grandtour 1.5 dCi FAP Authentique	103	520 l 18.36 ft³	4.7 l/100 km 50 mpg	124	Yes	2	4.50 m 177.2 in
Renault Clio Grandtour 1.5 dCi Authentique	65	439 l 15.50 ft³	4.6 l /100 km 51 mpg	120	No	2	4.20 m 165.3 in
VW Golf Variant BlueMotion Trendline DPF	105	505 l 17.83 ft³	4.6 l /100 km 51 mpg	122	Yes	2	4.56 m 179.5 in
Ford Focus Turnier 1.6 TDCi Ambiente	90	503 l 17.76 ft³	4.5 l/100 km 52 mpg	121	No	2	4.49 m 176.8 in
Renault Clio Grandtour 1.5 dCi Authentique	86	439 l 15.50 ft³	4.4 l/100 km 53 mpg	117	No	2	4.20 m 165.3 in
Ford Focus Turnier 1.6 TDCi DPF ECOnetic	109	503 l 17.76 ft³	4.3 l/100 km 55 mpg	119	Yes	2	4.49 m 176.8 in
Mini Cooper D Clubman DPF	110	260 l 9.18 ft³	4.1 l/100 km 57 mpg	109	Yes	2	3.94 m 155.1 in
Skoda Fabia Combi 1.4 TDI GreenLine DPF	80	480 l 16.95 ft³	4.1 l/100 km 57 mpg	109	Yes	2	4.24 m 167.0 in

* You can order it with 2 additional seats
[Source: Auto News]

Great article, posted a link to my blog. Thanks for doing the research. Consumers need this kind of information so decision making is convenient. The general public is inclined to make personal changes regarding environmental life choices when they are obvious no brainers and easily accommodated.

This helps to educate them about how short-sited the US diesel standards are. It also points out that recent administrations and congressional and senatorial bodies

have created barriers for US consumers to real choices regarding motor vehicles. This may be do to the relentless lobbying by US auto makers, so they don't have to compete with the global market. All in the name of our "Free Enterprise" market.