This is an excerpt from EERE Network News, a weekly electronic newsletter.

December 12, 2012

Energy Department, EPA Release 2013 Annual Fuel Economy Guide

The 2013 Scion iQ EV, a minicompact, is the top rated car in the 2013 Fuel Economy Guide. Credit: Scion

The Energy Department and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on December 6 released the 2013 Fuel Economy Guide, giving consumers information to help them choose the most fuel-efficient and lowest greenhouse gas-emitting vehicles. The 2013 models include efficient and low-emission vehicles in a variety of classes and sizes, but notable this year is the growing availability of hybrids and the increasing number of electric vehicles (EV).

This year's guide gives consumers a broad range of information that they can use to select their next fuel-efficient vehicle, whether they want to consider an EV or one that uses a more conventional fuel. For the first time, the EPA and the Energy Department have added a second top ten list of most efficient vehicles—separating advanced technology vehicles from conventional gasoline and diesel vehicles. Electric and plug-in hybrid electric models are the most fuel-efficient and lowest-emission vehicles available and are becoming more common. At the same time, consumers may still look up the conventional gasoline and diesel models that offer superior fuel efficiency.

The overall highest-ranking vehicle was the Scion iQ EV, a minicompact with a 121 miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe) rating. Some of the other cars topping their classes are: the 2013 Ford C-Max Energi Plug-in Hybrid and 2013 Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid, which tied for best in the midsized class with 58 MPGe for use of both electricity and gasoline; the 2013 Tesla Model S (60 kilowatt-hour battery pack), ranked best in the large car class with a 95 MPGe rating; and the 2013 Toyota Prius v, which topped the midsized wagon class with a 42 miles per gallon rating. See theEnergy Department press release and the www.fueleconomy.gov website.