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If you're like most of America, gas prices have made a huge impact on how you drive, how you live, and what you expect from your next new car. Prices are heading higher, gas is less available in some areas (here in metro Atlanta, it's hit or miss finding a fully supplied station, much less premium fuel).

With the obsession over gas prices likely here to stay in the near-term--and who knows where prices will go once the economy stabilizes--TheCarConnection.com's editors have sifted the data from our latest car reviews to bring you the best vehicles for great fuel economy.

TCC rates vehicles by weighing our and other reviewers' opinions of a vehicle's styling, performance, comfort and quality, safety, and features to arrive at an overall number from 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest possible score in each attribute. At first, we planned to rate only vehicles that offer 30-plus mpg in the EPA's highway cycle. However, neither the van nor the truck categories yielded any vehicles that could touch 30 mpg. In those cases, we looked for vehicles getting 25 mpg or better in highway mileage, which eliminated a huge swath of vehicles from contention--much as it's doing today at auto dealerships across the country.

Not surprisingly, gas-electric hybrids won three of our six categories: sedan, SUV/wagon, and green car. The van category, a field dominated by V-6s, was swept by a cleverly packaged compact van. Among trucks, a stalwart four-cylinder took top honors. And among two-doors, one automaker proves efficiency can be thrilling.

Follow the links below to find out more about our numeric ratings and to read full reviews of the winners:

Sedans: The Honda Civic Hybrid, combining Honda's IMA (Integrated Motor Assist) introduced back on the original Honda Insight, a diminutive four-cylinder, and a continuously variable transmission ring in at 40/45 mpg city/highway EPA and nets our top pick as a fuel-sipping sedan. The Civic Hybrid also took our honors for the Green category, beating out the Toyota Prius by 0.6 point.

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Two-doors: Proving, as we mentioned, that fun can also be quite frugal, the BMW-designed MINI Cooper Convertible gets our nod for highest-rated, fuel-efficient two-door. The second-gen MINIs benefit from a new engine design with ultra-efficient direct injection, and in either naturally aspirated (23/32 mpg) or turbocharged (21/29 mpg) EPA form, the MINI Cooper Convertible is a well-designed, frisky runabout with go-kart reflexes and plenty of power.

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SUVs/wagons: FoMoCo's well-designed (and freshly updated for '09) small SUV gas/electric hybrid duo, the Ford Escape and Mercury Mariner, won our SUV/wagon category. Employing a newly designed 2.5-liter four that uses miserly Atkinson-cycle technology, the Escape and Mariner hybrids are capable of electric-only propulsion at low speeds and manage stellar EPA mileage ratings of 34/31 mpg.

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Vans: Mazda's funky-yet-sensible Mazda5, our pick for the Van category, makes the most of its Mazda 3 underpinnings to offer respectable interior capacity while delivering better mileage than the competition. We found that "clever engineering makes good use of what space is available," and in a thirsty segment the Mazda's 22/28 EPA mpg (with five-speed manual) are downright impressive.

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Pickup trucks: As mentioned, there's not a lot in the realm of fuel-efficient pickups, and even mid-size and small trucks make do with older-tech gasoline engines that, when combined with a truck's aerodynamic inefficiencies, don't do much for mpg. Our highest-rated, most fuel-efficient pickup was Toyota's Tacoma 2WD four-cylinder, which was ranked at 20/25 mpg city/highway by the EPA.

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In the rare event that you should need to replace the NiMH (nickel metal hydride) batteries on your first- or second-generation Toyota Prius, the company is pleased to announce that they will now set you back 10 percent less.

It's somewhat remarkable news in a time when the cost of everything from a gallon of milk to a barrel of oil seems to be rising without end. Or is this a necessary, competitive reaction from a vehicle whose battery technology may soon become challenged by the introduction of ultra-efficient lithium-ion batteries in vehicles like the 2011 Chevy Volt?

Remember way back when hybrids were the new tech, and a bold Toyota released the first, frumpy-looking Prius riding on diminutive 13-inch tires? All the critics cried, "the batteries will cost a fortune to replace! The cost savings are a farce!" Well, the critics have been silenced by the remarkable performance and longevity of the Prius battery packs, the vast majority of which are still silently providing juice to Toyota's seamless Hybrid Synergy Drive. Millions of trouble-free miles on Toyota's Hybrid Synergy drive (also employed in the Camry Hybrid) have elevated the Prius to cult status, and rightly so.

Both first- and second-gen batteries previously cost $2,985. Now, first-gen batteries sell for $2,299 and second-gens retail for $2,588. Explaining the cost reduction, Gary Smith, Toyota Motor Sales corporate manager, states the company has maintained "from the beginning that battery replacement costs would continue to decline due to technology and volume related advancements, and we believe this will continue."--Colin Mathews

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Honda is still skeptical about plug-in hybrid technology, according to Bloomberg News by way of our diesel-loving friends over at Jalopnik. Voicing a concern that many engineers have about the viability of electric-only and predominantly electric vehicles coming soon to the U.S. market, Masaaki Kato of Honda R&D, feels "battery technology needs to advance further" before electric vehicles become viable, widespread, and popular in today's marketplace. The company hints at impending PR nightmares if companies get the electric battery technology wrong, and claims it is for now sticking with development of hydrogen fuel-cell technology like that in its FCX Clarity.

These concerns in spite of the huge PR wins enjoyed today by Chrysler with its announcement of an impending electric/E-REV fleet, and GM's huge Chevy Volt announcement last week. This type of hand-wringing caution from the same company that gave us the breathtaking, fresh-thinking NSX and cult-status CRX decades ago, when everybody else was churning out dowdy Paseos, Cavalier Z24s, and Dodge Sundance Coupes? Not to mention, one of the first to market with a viable hybrid in the form of the first Honda Insight?

With even Toyota promising a plug-in Prius in the future, we'd like to hear more fresh ideas and exciting plans from Honda, and less overblown, hypenated techno-geekery (SH-AWD) clothed in barely new wrappers like the '09 Acura RL. Yawn.

And again, no one's proven fuel cells are going to make it in large numbers before you're too enfeebled to own one.

Is Honda playing it too safe and simply not want to invest the huge sums necessary to fully develop lithium-ion batteries, or are they wise not to jump on the E-REV bandwagon? Give us your thoughts.--Colin Mathews

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After all the hoopla around the official reveal of the production Chevrolet Volt, preceded by equally breathless press around an apparent leak of unofficial photos, I was about to emit a strangled scream: "STOP already, the damn car won't be here for more than two years!"

Well, this morning Chrysler dealt with all that. In a CNBC exclusive interview, Detroit's perennial underdog and favorite whipping boy stole a bit of buzz from the omnipresent Volt. By announcing it intends to produce three EVs—one of them by the end of 2010—the company has gone GM one better, by giving each of its three brands an uber-cool electric-drive halo car. (Most commentators have justifiably ignored the oddly styled GEM Peapod, although it may spawn a limited-range urban vehicle—of which more later.)

To me, the interesting questions are: Who's supplying the batteries? Will the cars share anything at all with any vehicles Chrysler now builds? And will it actually build any of these cars itself?

Chrysler says the lithium-ion batteries in each of the three vehicles come from a different maker. This morning's Wall Street Journal reports that the company is talking to usual suspect A123 Systems, which recently filed for its initial public offering (IPO) and needs all the publicity it can get. Others include LG Chem (it is vying with A123 for the Volt contract), EnerDel, and JCI-Saft.

More intriguing, Chrysler may not adapt an existing platform for upcoming electric vehicles, as GM has done. The upcoming GM "global compact car" architecture, to be used for the 2010 Chevrolet Cruze and a zillion other vehicles, has been engineered to accept the Volt's E-Flex components, as well as standard gas and diesel engines for all the other variations.

But in a piece I wrote just before Chrysler's announcement at just-auto.com (you'll have to register, sorry), ENVI president Frank Rhodes nixed the idea of a single platform with two masters. Asked about integrating new powertrains—battery packs, electric drive, small range-extender engines—into architectures also built to accommodate standard engines, he reacted sharply. "Sharing platforms? We don't think that makes sense. We believe that end result is sort of the worst of all."

(He did suggest that unique designs and architectures didn't preclude shared production lines and intermingled assembly. That's an ambitious task, if the aluminum structures and reorganized packaging of the company’s Detroit show concepts carry over into production.)

Finally, Chrysler seems to be drifting toward outsourced vehicle assembly. The Dodge EV was the only "new" vehicle of the three it showed off today, and that appears to be a converted Lotus Europa—albeit in bright yellow with Viper-style double black stripes. Lotus already assembles the Tesla Roadster, which is based on some components of its Elise. Now Chrysler and Lotus are reportedly discussing assembly of the Dodge EV in Hethel. Do I hear an echo? Tesla can’t be particularly happy about this one …

Chrysler has also outsourced assembly of its not-yet-arrived small cars, both an unnamed version of the Nissan Sentra and its "Waiting for Godot" Chery small car. On the flip side, it's serving as an outsourcer to Volkswagen, for the Routan minivan (nee Dodge Caravan) and Nissan, for the next Titan pickup truck (nee Dodge Ram). Whether Chrysler decides to build its all-new EVs in house or finds a partner to assemble elsewhere—reducing all those annoying capital expenditure for things like plants and machinery—will be one to watch.

About that urban car, by the way: Chrysler may be serious about the idea of a limited-range city vehicle. In that same piece, the company gave strong hints that it thinks there's a market for a car that offers a range higher than 40 miles, but far lower than the 300 expected of a "regular" car.

Taking a stance against GM’s notion of "range anxiety," Chrysler suggests that it sees a group of buyers—apparently anal-retentive list-makers and mileage loggers—who'd be entirely comfortable with such a vehicle. The secret sauce may be that Chrysler owns Global Electric Motors (GEM), which has sold almost 40,000 "neighborhood electric vehicles" over the past 10 years. In other words, the company probably has a fair grasp on what EV users actually like and want. It promises to be a fascinating market exercise, if it actually happens.

In the end, I'm happy that Chrysler dropped this bombshell into our hidebound little world. For a long time, GM was the only North American electric-drive pioneer out there—and you know what they say about pioneers. (Something about arrows in the back…) Of course, Toyota is quietly spending hundreds of millions of dollars (cash the U.S. makers don’t actually have) to maintain its decade-long dominance of hybrid vehicles. And it's said to be thinking about making the Prius its own brand, with its own lineup of vehicles. One day soon, those cars will start rolling into showrooms, with less hoopla and much shorter lead times.

Meanwhile, let's give Chrysler two cheers. I'm keeping the third one until I actually drive production-ready versions of these suckers. And by the way, GM: That goes for the Volt, too.—John Voelcker

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According to a report released today by the quality monitors at J.D. Power and Associates, analysis of 40 million blog posts during the past six months reveals that Toyota, GM, and Honda generate a high volume of blog posts regarding environmental sustainability, and that those posts reveal a higher-than-average number of positive mentions regarding the same subject. This marks the organization's first research of exactly this kind, and it comes from J.D. Power's Web Intelligence Division, which "specializes in blog research and consumer generated media for market insight."

The study looked at consumer blogging regarding environmental sustainability, global warming, purchase trends, and user demographics. J.D. Power states that this report is "designed to provide automotive industry executives with ongoing measures of the extent of consumer engagement around the topic of sustainability."

The leaders in volume of posts as well as positive mentions were GM, Honda, and Toyota. Interestingly, Nissan outscored all brands in positive discussion, with 56 percent of posts mentioning the company positively regarding sustainability, but rings in with a total volume of only 2 percent. In contrast, top volume of blog discussions regarding sustainability was pegged by Toyota, which captured 14 percent in that measurement.

While consumer interest and opinion shouldn't be the only thing driving green technology and investment forward--just as opinion polls shouldn't be the only things underpinning our politician's announcements and decisions--J.D. Power and Associates' interesting new studies highlight the importance of environmental sustainability to today's automotive customers and might also stir up some healthy competition between automakers on this new forefront of automotive research, design, and sales.--Colin Mathews