The 100 Most Fuel-Efficient Cars in 1986

Have you ever wondered what the most fuel efficient cars manufactured in 1986 are? In this article, we'll list out the best 100 fuel efficient cars from 1986 with information on each of them!

How to Determine Fuel Efficiency

The list of the best fuel efficient cars on this page is based on one simple metric provided to us by the U.S. Department of Energy: the combined miles per gallon (MPG).

This metric is calculated by taking the total miles driven by the car and dividing it by the total gallons of fuel used.

Manufacturers provide this information to the Department of Energy, they provide it to us, and we provide it to you after sifting and organizing it.

The combined miles per gallon (MPG) is a measure of how much fuel the car uses per mile and is a good indicator of how efficient the car is. It's a combination of both city and highway driving, to give you a more overall accurate MPG.

With that out of the way, let's dive into the list. You can click the links in the table below to see more detailed information about each car.

Best 1986 Cars by Miles per Gallon

The list below is sorted by the combined miles per gallon (MPG) of the car, with the highest MPG at the top. This list includes both electric and regular fuel cars.

Car Combined MPG Fuel Cost
Chevrolet Sprint ER 48 $1,300
Honda Civic CRX HF 46 $1,350
Chevrolet Sprint 40 $1,550
Chevrolet Sprint Plus 40 $1,550
Honda Civic CRX HF 40 $1,550
Nissan Sentra 40 $1,950
Pontiac Firefly 40 $1,550
Pontiac Firefly FE 40 $1,550
Ford Escort FS 38 $2,050
Chevrolet Chevette CS 36 $2,150
Chevrolet Sprint Plus 36 $1,750
Pontiac Firefly 36 $1,750
Chevrolet Sprint 35 $1,800
Pontiac Firefly FE 35 $1,800
Volkswagen Golf 35 $2,200
Volkswagen Jetta 35 $2,200
Chevrolet Spectrum 34 $1,850
Ford Escort 34 $2,250
Ford Escort Wagon 34 $2,250
Ford Tempo 34 $2,250
Honda Civic 34 $1,850
Isuzu I-Mark 34 $1,850
Mercury Lynx 34 $2,250
Mercury Lynx Wagon 34 $2,250
Mercury Topaz 34 $2,250
Pontiac Sunburst 34 $1,850
Volkswagen Jetta 34 $2,250
Dodge Colt 33 $1,900
Mitsubishi Mirage 33 $1,900
Plymouth Colt 33 $1,900
Renault Alliance/Encore 33 $1,900
Isuzu I-Mark 32 $1,950
Isuzu Pickup 2WD 32 $2,400
Toyota Tercel 32 $1,950
Dodge Colt 31 $2,000
Mitsubishi Mirage 31 $2,000
Plymouth Colt 31 $2,000
Renault Alliance/Encore 31 $2,000
Dodge Charger 30 $2,100
Dodge Omni 30 $2,100
Nissan Pulsar NX 30 $2,100
Nissan Sentra 30 $2,100
Nissan Sentra Wagon 30 $2,100
Plymouth Horizon 30 $2,100
Plymouth Turismo 30 $2,100
Renault Alliance/Encore 30 $2,100
Chevrolet Nova 29 $2,150
Chevrolet Spectrum 29 $2,150
Ford Escort 29 $2,150
Ford Escort Wagon 29 $2,150
Honda Civic CRX 29 $2,150
Isuzu I-Mark 29 $2,150
Isuzu Pickup 2WD 29 $2,650
Mercury Lynx 29 $2,150
Mercury Lynx Wagon 29 $2,150
Pontiac Sunburst 29 $2,150
Renault Alliance/Encore 29 $2,150
Subaru Hatchback 29 $2,150
Toyota Camry 29 $2,650
Toyota Corolla 29 $2,150
Toyota Tercel 29 $2,150
Toyota Tercel Wagon 2WD 29 $2,150
Honda Civic 28 $2,250
Honda Civic CRX 28 $2,250
Honda Civic Wagon 28 $2,250
Isuzu Pickup 2WD 28 $2,750
Mercedes-Benz 190 28 $2,750
Mercedes-Benz 190 28 $2,750
Buick Skyhawk 27 $2,300
Buick Skyhawk Wagon 27 $2,300
Chevrolet Chevette CS 27 $2,300
Chevrolet Chevette CS 27 $2,300
Dodge Charger 27 $2,300
Dodge Colt 27 $2,300
Dodge Omni 27 $2,300
Ford Ranger Pickup 2WD 27 $2,850
Honda Civic 27 $2,300
Honda Civic CRX 27 $2,300
Hyundai Pony Excel 27 $2,300
Mazda 323 27 $2,300
Mitsubishi Mirage 27 $2,300
Nissan Truck 2WD 27 $2,850
Oldsmobile Firenza 27 $2,300
Oldsmobile Firenza Cruiser 27 $2,300
Plymouth Colt 27 $2,300
Plymouth Horizon 27 $2,300
Plymouth Turismo 27 $2,300
Pontiac 1000 27 $2,300
Pontiac Sunbird 27 $2,300
Pontiac Sunbird Wagon 27 $2,300
Toyota Camry 27 $2,300
Toyota Corolla 27 $2,300
Toyota Corolla Sport 27 $2,300
Toyota Tercel 27 $2,300
Chevrolet Nova 26 $2,400
Chrysler Laser/Daytona 26 $2,400
Chrysler LeBaron GTS 26 $2,400
Dodge Aries 26 $2,400
Dodge Aries Wagon 26 $2,400
Dodge Charger 26 $2,400

Best 1986 Regular Fuel Cars by Miles per Gallon

The table below contains the best 1986 regular fuel cars by combined miles per gallon (MPG).

Car Combined MPG Fuel Cost
Nissan Sentra (Manual 4-spd) 40 $1,950
Ford Escort FS (Manual 5-spd) 38 $2,050
Chevrolet Chevette CS (Manual 5-spd) 36 $2,150
Volkswagen Golf (Manual 5-spd) 35 $2,200
Volkswagen Jetta (Manual 5-spd) 35 $2,200
Ford Escort (Manual 5-spd) 34 $2,250
Ford Escort Wagon (Manual 5-spd) 34 $2,250
Ford Tempo (Manual 5-spd) 34 $2,250
Mercury Lynx (Manual 5-spd) 34 $2,250
Mercury Lynx Wagon (Manual 5-spd) 34 $2,250
Mercury Topaz (Manual 5-spd) 34 $2,250
Volkswagen Jetta (Manual 5-spd) 34 $2,250
Isuzu Pickup 2WD (Manual 4-spd) 32 $2,400
Isuzu Pickup 2WD (Manual 5-spd) 29 $2,650
Toyota Camry (Automatic 4-spd) 29 $2,650
Isuzu Pickup 2WD (Manual 5-spd) 28 $2,750
Mercedes-Benz 190 (Automatic 4-spd) 28 $2,750
Mercedes-Benz 190 (Manual 5-spd) 28 $2,750
Ford Ranger Pickup 2WD (Manual 5-spd) 27 $2,850
Nissan Truck 2WD (Manual 5-spd) 27 $2,850
Ford Ranger Pickup 4WD (Manual 5-spd) 26 $2,950
Jeep Cherokee/Wagoneer 2WD (Manual 5-spd) 26 $2,950
Jeep Comanche 2WD (Manual 5-spd) 26 $2,950
Peugeot 505 Sedan (Manual 5-spd) 26 $2,950
Isuzu Trooper (Manual 5-spd) 25 $3,100
Jeep Cherokee/Wagoneer 4WD (Manual 5-spd) 25 $3,100
Jeep Comanche 4WD (Manual 5-spd) 25 $3,100
Isuzu Pickup 2WD (Automatic 3-spd) 24 $3,200
Isuzu Pickup 4WD (Manual 5-spd) 24 $3,200
Volvo 740/760 (Manual 4-spd) 24 $3,200
BMW 5 Series (Automatic 4-spd) 23 $3,350
Volvo 740/760 (Automatic 4-spd) 23 $3,350
Volvo 740/760 Wagon (Automatic 4-spd) 23 $3,350
Mercedes-Benz 300SDL (Automatic 4-spd) 22 $3,500
Peugeot 505 Sedan (Automatic 4-spd) 22 $3,500
Peugeot 505 Station Wagon (Automatic 4-spd) 22 $3,500
Chevrolet C10 Pickup 2WD (Automatic 4-spd) 19 $4,050
Chevrolet C10 Pickup 2WD (Manual 4-spd) 19 $4,050
Chevrolet G10/20 Van 2WD (Automatic 4-spd) 19 $4,050
Chevrolet G10/20 Van 2WD (Manual 4-spd) 19 $4,050
GMC C15 Pickup 2WD (Automatic 4-spd) 19 $4,050
GMC C15 Pickup 2WD (Manual 4-spd) 19 $4,050
GMC G15/25 Vandura 2WD (Automatic 4-spd) 19 $4,050
GMC G15/25 Vandura 2WD (Manual 4-spd) 19 $4,050
Chevrolet G10/20 Sport Van 2WD (Automatic 4-spd) 18 $4,300
Chevrolet Suburban C10 2WD (Automatic 4-spd) 18 $4,300
GMC C15 Suburban 2WD (Automatic 4-spd) 18 $4,300
GMC G15/25 Rally 2WD (Automatic 4-spd) 18 $4,300
Chevrolet C20 Pickup 2WD (Automatic 4-spd) 17 $4,550
Chevrolet C20 Pickup 2WD (Manual 4-spd) 17 $4,550
Chevrolet G10/20 Sport Van 2WD (Manual 4-spd) 17 $4,550
Chevrolet K10 Blazer 4WD (Automatic 4-spd) 17 $4,550
Chevrolet K10 Pickup 4WD (Automatic 4-spd) 17 $4,550
Chevrolet K10 Pickup 4WD (Manual 4-spd) 17 $4,550
Chevrolet K20 Pickup 4WD (Automatic 4-spd) 17 $4,550
GMC C25 Pickup 2WD (Automatic 4-spd) 17 $4,550
GMC C25 Pickup 2WD (Manual 4-spd) 17 $4,550
GMC G15/25 Rally 2WD (Manual 4-spd) 17 $4,550
GMC K15 Jimmy 4WD (Automatic 4-spd) 17 $4,550
GMC K15 Pickup 4WD (Automatic 4-spd) 17 $4,550
GMC K15 Pickup 4WD (Manual 4-spd) 17 $4,550
GMC K25 Pickup 4WD (Automatic 4-spd) 17 $4,550
Chevrolet K20 Pickup 4WD (Manual 4-spd) 16 $4,800
Chevrolet Suburban K10 4WD (Automatic 4-spd) 16 $4,800
GMC K15 Suburban 4WD (Automatic 4-spd) 16 $4,800
GMC K25 Pickup 4WD (Manual 4-spd) 16 $4,800
Vixen Motor Company 21 TD (Manual 5-spd) 16 $4,800

Conclusion

The most fuel efficient car of 1986 is the Chevrolet Sprint ER. It has a combined MPG of 48 and costs $1,300 per year to drive it.

The most fuel efficient non-electric car of 1986 is the Nissan Sentra. It has a combined MPG of 40 and costs $1,950 per year to drive it.

Most Fuel Efficient Cars By Year

If you want to continue researching the best fuel efficient cars of all time, you can also look at the list of cars by year.

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