Best minivan for gas mileage

ADDITIONAL MODEL INFORMATION

If you're searching for a new car that can fit your whole family, you don't need to get stuck with SUV fuel economy. Instead, you can choose from one of our seven excellent SUV alternatives, each of which offers better gas mileage than most SUVs - but has just as much space for your entire family and their accessories.

Ford Flex

If you need seven seats and acceptable fuel economy, but you can't be convinced to get a minivan, the 3-row Ford Flex might be the car for you. Yes, we realize the Flex's styling is a little unorthodox - but that's part of its charm. The boxy look also gives the Flex its excellent cargo capacity, which measures in at a whopping 83.2 cu ft. with the rear seats down, and more than 20 cu ft. behind its standard third row. Most importantly, the Flex, which starts around , 000 with shipping, easily trumps Ford's other full-size SUV, the Expedition, when it comes to fuel economy: While the Expedition returns 14 miles per gallon in the city and 20 mpg on the highway, the Flex comes in at 18 mpg city/25 mpg hwy with its standard 287-horsepower 3.5-liter V6.

Kia Soul

The newly updated Kia Soul offers funky styling and reasonable pricing that starts below $16, 000 with shipping. It also includes a surprisingly large cargo area with a cavernous 62 cu ft. of space with the seats down, a figure that falls only a few cubic feet shy of small SUVs like the Ford Escape and Honda CR-V. Rounding out its list of benefits is fuel economy, which stands at 24 mpg city/30 mpg hwy - far better than most compact SUVs. Maybe the Soul's only drawback is a lack of available all-wheel drive, which may be a big deal to shoppers in snowy areas.

Scion xB

Get past the Scion xB's unusual styling and you'll find an excellent alternative to a compact SUV at a budget-friendly price. With a starting MSRP of around $18, 000 with shipping, the xB undercuts small SUVs like the Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4, which start at $24, 000 and $24, 500, respectively. It also offers roughly the same cargo space: 70 cu ft. to the CR-V's 71 and the RAV4's 73. Best of all, the xB's fuel economy rating of 22 mpg city/28 mpg hwy matches or exceeds most compact SUVs, leaving a lack of available all-wheel drive as its sole drawback.