Fuel economy: 29 city/40 highway mpg

This brand-new, subcompact sedan from Ford is actually one of the top-selling cars in Europe. In a more upscale version for the U.S. market, the Ford Fiesta is powered by a 119 horsepower, 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine that gets 29 city/40 highway mpg when equipped with the automatic transmission and what Ford calls the Super Fuel Economy package, or SFE.

Non-SFE models with the automatic transmission achieve 29 city/38 highway mpg, while manual transmission models get 28 city/37 highway mpg; manual isn't as good as automatic in this instance. With a starting MSRP of about $13,300, all Fiesta models come standard with air conditioning, tilt/telescopic steering wheel, MP3 connectivity, height-adjustable driver's seat, seven air bags and electronic stability control.