I was looking at an Elio. Would not go on a long trip with it, but for around town or shorter trips in the 300 mile range it would be great. They are basically an encapsulated three wheeler with heat, A/C, three airbags, 1 passenger seat behind the driver. They get 84 mpg, hold 8 gal gas, will do over 100 mph, and all for $6,800.00
Www.eliomotors.com
I wish they made 4 wheels out of it instead of 3. The back of the car look ugly. The front part looks okay
I bought an AWD GMC Safari from a rental agency, it gets only 16 MPG in town, but can handle a decent amount of cargo with the rear seat removed.
What made it work was the $500 buy-in, $300 on repairs, and $500 for new tires. For an initial cost of $1300, I can buy a lot of gasoline, even at today's prices, and it will get around in winter. It isn't sexy, but it gets the job done. The turning radius and shorter wheelbase make it easy to drive and park in town, too, unlike the bigger vehicles I take when I am off to work.