41 mpg city is quite amazing for 200 horsepower. Unfortunately, it won't be available in Washington. WTF?!?

Quoted: The Altima Hybrid’s hybrid system is rated at a net power of 198 horsepower (148 kW) with fuel economy estimated at 41 mpg city/36 mpg highway (39 mpg combined) and emissions rated Advanced Technology-Partial Zero Emissions Vehicle (AT-PZEV). "Combined with Altima’s standard 20-gallon fuel tank, the Altima Hybrid has a projected driving range of up to 700 miles between fill-ups."
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[Vehicle] will be sold beginning in early 2007 in those states that have adopted California emissions regulations: California, New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, Rhode Island, Maine and New Jersey.

Good to see GM rolling out hybrids. Will have to wait and see if there really is such an increase in fuel economy.

Quoted: Our beloved greasemonkey brethren at Jalopnik tell us the techo-goodness inside is called dual-mode hybrid, where GM and their buddies at BMW and DaimlerChrysler have figured out how to hook up two separate connections into the hybrid system and shoehorn all that into the standard-sized transmission case. One of those connections is for low-speed, high load-type operations, and another for high-speed, freeway-type, lighter load-type operations. Bottom line? 25% better fuel economy, and 365hp.

plugging a car into an outlet obviously requires energy. i guess the assumption is that power plant energy is more environmentally friendly than an internal combustion engine.

Quoted: Toyota sees a future in plugging in vehicles — instead of simply pulling in for gas. Already a leader in the hybrid market with its Prius sedan, Toyota Motor Corp. plans to develop a hybrid vehicle that will run locally on batteries charged by a typical 120-volt outlet before switching over to a gasoline engine for longer hauls.

Looking for a fuel-efficient SUV?

23 overall mpg and 22 overall mpg for the Lexus RX 400h and Toyota Highlander Hybrid, respectively, is very good -- especially considering that these are 6-cylinder models.

Quoted: The chart that follows features the 11 most fuel-efficient SUVs that Consumer Reports has tested. (See our list of the most fuel-efficient cars).