Commuter suggestions

[buffalobo]

I have an 2005 Chevy Colorado P/U extended cab. Rear wheel drive. Gasoline 2.8 liter four cylinder. Get almost 30MPG on the freeway. Automatic transmission. Had two breakdowns. One ignition coil failed by the house, $35 fix. Variable valve timing (VVT) solenoid failed, $370 at the dealer to replace $35 part. Was 50 miles from the house. Modifications are transmission oil cooler, deeper cooling transmission pan, and air bags on rear for towing and heavy loads.I added a tow hitch. Topper over bed. I love this lil truck. 141k miles. Towed a Chevy inboard speedboat from Florida. Has great handling. Same truck as GMC Canyon and Isuzu I-280...

I have 5 trucks. All GM's. This one is the most fun to drive and easiest to park.


https://www.edmunds.com/chevrolet/colorado/2005/review/

Really like the Colorado but need better fuel economy.

[SideShow Bob]

Need more cargo space and under 70mph on I76 during morning commute will get you run over.

The Two door version has a big trunk for a small car, at least a ?Two body? if you fold the legs right. More if you fold the back seats down.
Fuel economy drops to around 31 - 32 at 75 to 80.

[Erni]

Not close to anything you were thinking about but I had a 07 Yaris Toy. 34mpg and I drove it like I stole it. From new to its demise at 135k due to an accident it had very few issues. I warped the brakes at 30k but drove them till 90k but they were still good. Should have changed earlier but it worked. Oil changes and tires only. New plugs at 100k made the engine more peppy. Also changed the steel rims for lighter alloys which made it faster to accelerate.

But if you want to ferry a Sheppy compacts might be too small.

I also looked at a Chevy Sonic, and it is a blast but even smaller. The Chevy Spark, well it?s cheap and good MPG but I just did not hate myself enough to buy one - the acceleration was glacial.
I know these suggestions are not exactly what you asked for. But these were the results of my own commuter search about 2 years ago. I like the hatch backs as they offer better utility for me.

[eddiememphis]

Best commuter car I had was an '87 Corolla FX-16.

Two door hatchback. 1.6l fuel injected with variable valve timing. 7800 rpm redline, 115 angry horsepower.

I had no idea what it was when I got it. Turns out it was a sleeper hot rod by taking a 4a-ge engine from the GTS and MR2 and stuffing it in a plain white wrapper.

The little engine is still sought after by Toyota nerds. About 5000 rpm, the valve timing changed and it felt like a turbo kicked in.

Small and light, it was like driving a go kart. Rowing through the five speed was fun with a light clutch and short throw shifter.

I put around 100k miles on it. Sold it about 7 years ago with 240k to a kid that was very excited to find one.

[buffalobo]

Thanks all, I think I got what I needed.