The Most Fuel Efficient Minivans

It's a lovely spring day, and I'm you'd think I'd be out somewhere having fun with my dog, Instead I'm at home, afraid to even venture out because of gas prices that in my area are averaging $4.30 per gallon. 

So my mind turned to fuel efficient cars, and I wondered...what are the most fuel efficient minivans?  

First stop for information on mpgs is always fueleconomy.gov.  Ah, they've read my mind with their link to the most and least gas efficient vehicles in several categories. Here's the most fuel efficient trucks, vans and SUVs.  Of course, hybrids lead the pack for the SUVs.  Hmmm, best minivan is the Mazda5.  I saw one of those at the L.A. car show, and they're not exactly a full-size minivan.  I guess you could call it a mini-minivan.  But who am I to quibble with 28 mpg highway?

Okay, on to other search results and the little pieces of information that have floated to the surface.  For example, did you know that Toyota markets a hybrid minivan in Japan, the Toyota Estima?  Hey guys, send a few of those our way!

If you drive the Honda Odyssey EX-L and Touring models, you could be looking at mpgs as high as 20/28.  That's looking pretty good for a full-size minivan!

Ah, according to Consumer Reports, the Toyota Sienna XLE also gets as high as 28 mpg highway, putting it right on par with the Odyssey.  Not bad.

Of course, to save money on fuel you have to spend money on the more expensive models of both the Sienna and the Odyssey. <sigh>  Back to the drawing board.

Do you have a minivan that gets good gas mileage?  Then share the joy, and tell us about it!