Top Five Gas Guzzling Cars

When buying a new car, one thing we always consider is how many miles per gallon the car gets. We all have an idea of what constitutes “good” mpg, but what about the other side of the equation? Which cars really guzzle the gas and get the worst mileage?

Typically, estimated fuel costs are based on an average of 15,000 miles per year, nearly evenly split between city and highway driving – at 55 and 45 percent, respectively. To come up with its cost figures, the Environmental Protection Agency uses a figure of $3.13 for regular gas, and $3.35 for cars that require premium gasoline. Now that you’ve got that basis for comparison, let’s see some of the biggest gas guzzlers.

Coming in at a paltry 11 mpg in the city and 14 mpg on the highway, the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT 8 is one of the worst gas mileage offenders. Step down to the 5.7 liter HEMI engine, and you can do a little better, saving about $1,000 a year in fuel costs.

Looking for a gas guzzling small station wagon? Expect to spend about $3,300 a year to drive the Audi S4 Avant. At 14 mpg in the city and 21 mpg on the highway, you’re definitely not looking at much in the way of fuel economy.

The worst mpg offenders, however, are found amongst the powerful European luxury cars. If you’re looking for a sporty two-seater, you can expect to spend about $5,000 a year in gas to drive a Lamborghini Murcielago or a Bugatti Veyron. That $5,000 a year will buy you 8 mpg in the city, and 13 or 14 mpg respectively on the highway. That’s not a lot of mileage, but then again, you don’t drive a Lamborghini or a Bugatti for fuel efficiency, do you? That Bugatti Veyron, by the way, will set you back about $1.5 million. Of course, if you have that kind of money to spend on a car, bad gas mileage may not even a blip on your radar!

If you’d like to keep the price of your luxury car down to a more reasonable $300,000, you can also buy yourself bad gas mileage in the form of a Bentley Azure. If you were to drive your Bentley Azure for a year, you’d spend a little more than $4,500 in gas. However, if you drive a Bentley, chances are it’s only one of your cars, and you drive it far less than the estimated 15,000 miles per year. You’re probably more interested in the other qualities the Bentley has to offer, like power, luxury and performance, coupled with an elegant interior space.

Obviously, most of these cars are out of the reach of the average consumer. Still, whatever mpg your car gets, you can improve on that by developing good driving habits and keeping your car well maintained. You may not be able to drive a Bentley or a Lamborghini, but at least you can feel superior knowing that you’re getting more miles to the gallon.