Fuel Efficiency Down From ‘91, EPA Reports

Fuel efficiency in 1992 cars is down from last year’s models, the sixth consecutive year with little or no reduction in new automobiles’ appetite for gasoline, the government reported Sunday.

In the Environmental Protection Agency’s annual fuel economy survey, which covers about 1,000 cars, 1992 models average 27.5 miles per gallon.

Down from 27.8 mpg in 1991, it is the industry’s poorest showing since the mid-1980s, when a decade-long surge in mileage improvements leveled off.

“It’s a slight decrease,” said Eldert Bontekoe, manager for certification and fuel economy for the EPA in Ann Arbor, Mich. “I wouldn’t jump up and down and say it’s really big, but it does suggest some level of decrease from last year to this year.”

Six of the 10 highest-ranked 1992 cars get 50 mpg or better, but they are rare exceptions. Topping the list is the one-liter minicompact Geo Metro XFi, which gets 53 mpg in city driving and 58 mpg on the highway.

Bringing up the rear was the luxurious two-seat Lamborghini Diablo, which gets 9 mpg in town and 14 on the highway.

The government’s first fuel-economy standards in the 1970s coincided with the oil crisis, which sent buyers scurrying to showrooms for smaller cars. The average leaped from 14 mpg in 1974 to 27 in 1985.

Since 1987, the fleet averages have stagnated. They were 28.1 mpg in 1987, 28.6 mpg in 1988, 28.1 mpg in 1989 and 27.8 mpg in 1990.

Four of the 10 best performing cars were variations of the Geo, a Japanese-made minicompact sold through General Motors. Four were versions of the Honda Civic and two were versions of the Suzuki Swift. All get at least 39 mpg in the city and 43 mpg on the highway.