So....I've got a tow vehicle that you've probably overlooked....
I've got a '98 VW New Beetle TDI (turbodiesel) 5spd. Now, I've modded the heck out of the 1.9L diesel for power AND economy (chipped, intake, exhaust, injectors, clutch, custom downtube, emissions "stuff" ("stuff" is all I'm legally allowed to say :wink
. The nice thing about small diesels is that when you increase power output, you also increase fuel economy (if you keep you foot out of it 8) ).
In the winter (no a/c obviously), I consistently get 58/62 MPG city/highway :shock: . In our garish +110F summer temps (a/c running like mad, inter-cooler not really helping out the turbo that much, etc.) I only get about 52/56 MPG, sometimes dipping into the upper 40 MPGs if I have a lot of short trips or stop-n-go. My operating cost (fuel only) varies with the price of diesel, but I'm usually in the neighborhood of $0.04-$0.06/mile.
To give you some idea of power (and economy),
stock, my NB put out 90HP @ 4000 RPM, and generated 150 lb-ft @ 1900 RPM....oh, ya....stock MPG was listed at 38MPG, maybe 45 after break-in (diesels get better economy with age....they're worse from 0-50K miles, and tend to level off around 50-85K miles). Now, it's in the neighborhood of 185HP and 265 lb-ft :shock: (with that kind of torque, not to mention the power-to-weight ratio, you can tow just about anything). To boot, I'll smoke a lot of things in the 1/4 mile that you wouldn't expect (I'll blow the doors off Mustang GTs and VW GTI's all day long)!
VW has put TDIs in several models over the years, so you have your choice of New Beetle, Jetta, Passat, or the Toureg. The downside is that (new) diesels cost more ($1500-2K surcharge), and since the last forever and are pricebusters at the pump, used ones are hard to come by and retain their value tremendously (the kbb on my NB TDI is $7500 while the same gasser is only $2000). You can find them, but the secondary market is brutal. :evil:
Anyway, I just wanted to chime in and hopefully turn another gas-user into a diesel-lover. :wink:
If you're interested, check out this TDI-specific forum (I'm on there too)...they do cater to VWs, but you'll find everything from Mercedes to Cummings enthusiasts 'lurking':
https://www.tdiclub.com/