Muscle cars are all about raw power and presence. When one brings home a muscle car, you can be sure that they were allured by the monstrous V8 that sits under the hood of their car, ready and raring to go zooming down the dragline.
However, if you’re bothered by the rising gas prices all around and are in no mood to go electric, there are certainly a fair share of muscle cars that are gas-sippers instead of guzzlers and still deliver every bit of power you’d expect from the six or eight cylinders powering them.
Here are the best used muscle cars that won’t drag you to the gas station every time you head out of the house.
8 2017 Dodge Challenger SXT
Dodge has manufactured the new generation Challenger since 2008. If you're looking to become part of the Challenger heritage and bring one home, the 2017 Challenger SXT offers great gas efficiency. You could add the 2017 Challenger to your garage for about $20,000.
Of course, its mileage varies with what engine option you choose to equip it with. The Dodge Challenger SXT should net you about 30 MPG on the highway if you go for the 3.6-liter V6, while the 485-HP V8 power unit would bring that mileage down by about 5 MPG and return 25 MPG. Lastly, the monstrous 707-HP V8 would give you 22 MPG on the highway—still solid by V8 rules.
7 2015 Chevrolet Camaro LT
The Chevy Camaro is really an impressive piece of muscle. While you're looking for a Camaro on the used car market, a 2015 LT variant might suit you best. Moreover, the 3.6-liter V6 on the 2015 Camaro nets the best amount of mileage across its entire lineup.
The V6 variant boasts 19 MPG in the city and 29 MPG on the highway. Thus, with a combined 22 miles to the gallon, the 2015 Chevrolet Camaro LT is one muscle car you'd be happy to bring home at under $20k, and keep it running.
6 2016 Ford Mustang EcoBoost
The era of turbocharged muscle cars is truly upon us. In fact, it has been here for a while now, and no other car embodies it better than the 2016 Ford Mustang EcoBoost. Returning an impressive 22 MPG in the city and an even more remarkable 31 MPG on the highway, the 2016 Mustang EcoBoost has by far one of the best fuel economy ratings among recent Mustang models.
Granted, many look down on the four-cylinder engine, since it's tough for even V6s to make the 'traditional' cut for muscle car engines, but the Mustang remains a muscle car through-and-through even with the 2.3-liter four-pot under the hood, which produces 310 HP. Now six years old, one can bring home this rather impressive piece of machinery for close to $18,000.
5 2017 Dodge Charger
Dodge remains one of the topmost contenders in the American muscle car game not just with their sheer power, but also their cars' ability to not guzzle gas by the gallon without crunching sufficient miles on the road. In that vein, the 2017 Dodge Charger, too, is a great choice if you're looking to limit your trips to the gas station, and you can even bring one home for as low as $15,500.
Moreover, it is fitted with a standard V6, a step-up from the EcoBoost on the more gas-friendly EcoBoost engines on the Mustang. With 30 MPG on the highway and 19 MPG in the city, the 2017 Charger remains competitive in terms of mileage even against contemporary muscle cars. If it is AWD instead of RWD that you opt for, expect a 3 MPG drop on the highway front.
4 2021 Ford Mustang
Rewind to a decade ago, and the Ford Mustang etched its name into the history books as the first muscle car that boasted over 300 HP while returning over 30 MPG. Today, things have changed, as the turbocharged EcoBoost now reigns the Mustang lineup, producing 310 HP and 350 lb-ft of torque.
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The turbocharged four-cylinder under the hood of the 2021 Mustang, paired to an impressive 10-speed automatic transmission manages to return up to 32 MPG on the highway. Relatively new on the market, expect to shell out close to $28,000 for the EcoBoost 2021 Ford Mustang.
3 2018 Chevrolet Camaro
Despite being an almost five-year-old entrant to the list, the 2018 Chevrolet Camaro returns just as impressive economy figures as its contemporary rivals. The 275-HP four-cylinder variant offers a great mileage of 31 MPG on the highway. However, where it certainly takes the cake away from Dodge and Ford, is its 22 MPG city economy, which is just a couple more miles than the 19 the Mustang puts out on the city streets.
Moreover, even the 335-HP six-cylinder engine option returns a very impressive 20 MPG on the city and 30 highway MPG. Just a year old, the 2021 Chevy Camaro can enter your garage for around $27,000.
2 2017 Ford Mustang Coupe RWD
It is no wonder that the Mustang keeps popping up on this list. In fact, truth be told, any Ford Mustang since the dawn of the EcoBoost is a great deal to save up on gasoline. The 310-HP, four-cylinder 2.3-liter powers the 2017 Mustang Coupe, and it can be yours for under $18,000.
With 21 miles to the gallon on the city roads and 30 MPG on the interstate, the 2017 Ford Mustang proved yet again that a muscle car isn't just about cylinders. Returning a fantastic combined economy of 24 MPG, you truly can't miss with the four-cylinder EcoBoost engines.
1 2019 Dodge Challenger
The Dodge Challenger lineup has always been generous on power. Over the recent years, the Challengers have also certainly been ramping up their economy, as evidenced by the 2019 Dodge Challenger. Even though one might be used to seeing 30 MPG on the highway only with newer four-cylinder turbocharged engines, the Challenger manages to meet that criterion without sacrificing those two cylinders.
A combined economy for the 2019 Challenger comes out at 23 MPG, which gives the usual 19/30 city/highway split you're used to seeing by now. However, the kicker comes in as the 3.6-liter V6 producing 305 HP. For just over $22,000, the 2019 Challenger sure comes at a great price.