2009 Minivan Gas Mileage

       There is little variety in the gas mileage of 2009 minivans sold in the U.S. The typical minivan averages 16 or 17 miles per gallon in the city and 23 to 25 miles per gallon on the highway. For example, the 2009 Honda Odyssey LX gets 16 miles per gallon in the city and 23 miles per gallon on the highway. The lone exception to those low numbers is the Mazda 5 which gets 22 miles per gallon in the city and 29 miles per gallon on the highway. The Mazda 5 is smaller than all other minivans and is only considered a minivan in the loosest sense of the word. The Mazda 5 has a seating capacity of 6, while most minivans, including the Honda Odyssey LX, seat 7. Certain models of the Honda Odyssey and the Toyota Sienna have a seating capacity of 8. For a regular sized minivan, buyers will get the same fuel economy no matter what minivan they buy.

       A Hybrid minivan would be expected to bump up the fuel economy of a minivan, but currently,there are currently no hybrid minivans sold in the U.S. Though with demand high, it should not be long before a hybrid minivan hits the U.S. market. The carmaker most likely to release the first hybrid minivan is Toyota. Toyota has been synonymous with hybrids since the release of the Toyota Prius. In Japan, Toyota has been selling a hybrid minivan called the Toyota Estima Hybrid since 2001. The Toyota Estima Hybrid reportedly seats eight and has a fuel economy in the 30s. The American version of the Estima would most likely be the Toyota Sienna Hybrid. The Sienna Hybrid would get slightly worse gas mileage from its Japanese counterpart because of the increased acceleration demanded by the American buyer. Whether it is Toyota or another carmaker, whoever makes a hybrid minivan will be able to separate their minivan from rest of the class.

       The large sports utility vehicle (large SUVs) is a class of car that offers similar seating capacity to the standard minivan. The Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe, Cadillac Escalade, GMC Yukon, Lincoln Navigator, Nissan Armada, and Toyota Highlander are all Large SUVs that seat 8 or 9. The typical Large SUV will get 12 to 14 miles per gallon in the city and 17-19 miles per gallon on the highway. The large SUV is often larger, heavy, and can tow more weight than the standard minivan; hence, the large SUV tends to get worse gas mileage than the minivan. The large SUV becomes an option to the fuel-conscious buyer because of the few carmakers that offer a hybrid version of their large SUV. The Chevrolet Tahoe and the GMC Yukon are offered with a gas/electric engine. These hybrid SUVs get 20 miles per gallon in the city and 20 miles per gallon on the highway. So the the large hybrid SUVs provide a gas mileage advantage over the standard minivan in the city, but the highway driving, where the electric motor contributes little, still favors the minivan.

       The largest vehicles that will provide a significant improvement over the minivan's fuel economy are a group of mid-size hybrid SUVs. The 2009 Ford Escape Hybrid and the Mercury Mariner Hybrid are SUVs with a seating capacity of 5 that get 29 miles per gallon in the city and 27 miles per gallon on the highway. The Toyota Highlander Hybrid is slightly larger than the Ford Escape Hybrid ad Mercury Mariner Hybrid and gets 27 miles per gallon in the city and 25 miles per gallon on the highway. These mid-size SUVs have impressive fuel economy but do have the same capacity as a standard minivan.
When buying a minivan, fuel economy will not provide much of a guide. In order to find some variety to the gas mileage, a buyer will have to change car classes and look at the more expensive mid-size and large hybrid SUVs.