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Much smarter is good high-mpg car a few years old - Prizm, Escort Wagon, Corolla, Sentra - WITH A 5-SPEED and proper driving technique. My twelve-year-old Escort Wagon gets 37-38mpg all the time, and has hit 40mpg if I try really really hard - and it's got a LOT more utility than a Smart. It's comfy, probably handles better than Smart - and I can carry four people, or one passenger and two deer stands (and the deer on the way home). The design dates to 1991; engines/systems have gotten much better since then. I think car makers could do a LOT better than the Smart, and very easily. Imagine the Escort Wagon (or Prizm/Corolla wagon) with a more modern engine - same size/utility car, similar power output, better MPG. Why the heck don't they do it?
