We're bombarded with it in ads.

Your local car dealer keeps calling you saying if you're thinking of downsizing that gas guzzling ride you have now we have some great new crossovers that are rated OVER 30MPG highway!

Ever see the reasonably attractive compact premium SUV's running around town and think to yourself I could get along just fine in that and all that gas money I would save could go straight to the bank.

Wouldn't you just love that?

Seeing you're probably only getting 12-14mpg real world city and it's a MIRACLE if you hit 20mpg on a long trips.

Well the Spies say don't be so fast to fork over your dough and give up all the power, space and utility until you've REALLY done your homework!

Why?

Because from OUR experience and from the feedback from countless readers and consumers we talk to, that HIGH MILEAGE crossover really DOESN'T get EVEN CLOSE to the mileage they say!

Check out the real world mileage from the CHAMPIONS in the Premium Compact SUV space from the last Consumer Guide tests.

Premium Compact SUVs-Source: Consumer Guide

Vehicle	Body Style	Transmission	EPA City/Highway	CG Fuel Economy
Acura RDX-FWD	wagon	automatic	19/24* mpg	21.4 mpg
BMW X3 xDrive28i-AWD	wagon	automatic	19/25* mpg	20.6 mpg
Audi Q5 3.2-AWD	wagon	automatic	18/23* mpg	19.6 mpg

*Disclaimer from Consumer Guide: Even luxury makers are thinking small these days as witnessed by the growing number of vehicles in this class. Note that all of the top three use premium-grade gas. Missing the podium by just .1 mpg was the Volvo XC60, an AWD T6 (turbocharged) version of which averaged 19.5 mpg on regular gas.

Now I look at this and say how miserable does it get with the MAJORITY of the others if THESE are the CHAMPS at COMBINED averages of around 20mpg?

And they REQUIRE premium fuel besides!

What the heck?

My behemoth 2011 Ford F-150 SuperCrew 4x4 EcoBoost gets 15.9 city and 21 highway. On REGULAR gas!

What we're saying here is that we would recommend looking long and hard if the payoff of downsizing is so small.

No there are SOME small crossover SUV's (And that's RARE) that are overachievers like the Lexus RX Hybrid, Highlander Hybrid, 2012 Ford Escape (Gas version AND Hybrid), 2013 Ford Escape ECOBOOST 1.6, that actually cross the 25mpg barrier in real world driving.

But for the most part, we can virtually guarantee you that YOUR savings will be minimal at best in MOST small crossover SUV's.

One in particular from our tests that delivered really disappointing mileage for its size was the 2011 Hyundai Tucson.

We could hardly get 16 city and 20 hwy.

Let us know YOUR personal experiences and your friends findings in the real world where you live with models that deliver on the promise or ones that FAIL.

And remember that in this case it is ESPECIALLY important to SPY BEFORE you BUY!

kussimek - 4/23/2012 10:09:55 PM

+1 Boost

Just got 377 miles on one tank of gas in my Mazda cx5 gt that I would compare to some of those luxary SUVs.

Agent001 - 4/23/2012 10:44:30 PM

+2 Boost

So it's a respectable 25.8 mpg, seeing it holds 14.8 gallons.

Better than most but not up to the claims that it's 26 city/35 hwy.

IMPOSSIBLE with engine turned on to get 35.

001

chewy - 4/24/2012 12:08:24 AM

0 Boost

Looking at their database comparable vehicles do about the same unless it's a diesel or hybrid. The diesel Q7/Touareg did quite well in their testing though.

From my experience it isn't difficult do get EPA highway even when driving 80+ but you have to drive at least 30 minutes on the highway. Short errands from one parking lot to another do end up being much lower than EPA city but real city conditions are tough to model.

carsarefun - 4/24/2012 7:29:39 AM

-1 Boost

Have been getting 25.2 mpg with our 2012 BMW X3 xDrive28i (inline 6 cylinders.

The vehicle has only 2500 miles on it in careful mixed city/highway driving during the winter months.

Expect to see better mpg numbers in the summer and as the engine continues to break in.

CARS ARE FUN

skytop - 4/24/2012 1:01:58 PM

+1 Boost

My F350 diesel never got better than 16.7 mpg hwy without a trailer being towed. If towing, it dropped to about 12 mpg. Local was about 13.5 mpg unladen. I never found the diesel to produce good mpg but it did produce lots of power. Factor in the almost 18 quarts of oil and two filters for each change and the operation of a diesel becomes very pricey.
Only by driving over a 100K a year can you amortize the huge expense of purchasing and maintaining a diesel.

chewy - 4/24/2012 6:39:00 PM

+2 Boost

I am sure the gas version would be in the single digits towing.

Patronus - 4/24/2012 2:48:17 PM

+1 Boost

Largely this is an issue of weight and number of cylinders. Dropping the 4500lb. V-8 for a 4000lb V-6 is not going to yield much fuel savings.

Dropping the 4500lb. V-8 for a 3500lb. 4-cylinder, on the other hand, may indeed yield some fuel savings.

Of course this is across the same fuel type and boost only....

kussimek - 4/24/2012 8:10:12 PM

+2 Boost

Actually 001 , when I refill I don't wait until last second to refuel I usually add 12-12.5 gallons which is closer to 31 mpgs.

Gambit - 4/25/2012 12:53:32 PM

+2 Boost

Plus the 35mpg figure is for highway mileage with a manual transmission, the auto is rated @32 I think. So I'd say he got a pretty respectable figure compared to what it's rated for.

kussimek - 4/25/2012 1:54:49 PM

+2 Boost

You're right Gambit, the manual is 35 and auto is rated @ 32 mpg highway. I really love the car.