U.S. Online Auto Consumers Can't Face the Gas Crisis - CarGurus.com

70% of 2007 top 10 most popular cars on CarGurus are utility vehicles or sports cars.
None of the top 10 exceeds the minimum CAFE mileage guidelines.
Jeep Wrangler and Ford Mustang top the list, Prius only #15.

Cambridge, MA, August 2, 2007 - CarGurus (www.cargurus.com), a leading online automotive community, today announced its mid-year top 10 most popular car models as voted by consumers on www.CarGurus.com. Based on the quantity and quality of ratings received by each car on CarGurus, 2007 models were ranked by consumer popularity. Given the recent news on global warming and the need for greater fuel economy, it was surprising that 70% of the top 10 most popular cars were utility trucks or sports cars. Topping the popularity list was the Jeep Wrangler, followed by the Ford Mustang.

Of additional interest was the fact that none of the top 10 cars had an average gas mileage that met the most recent 2004 Federal CAFE gas mileage standard (27.5 MPG for cars and 20.7 MPG for light trucks). The gas-stingy Toyota Prius (avg MPG of 46) was only the 15th most popular car on the list. According to Automotive News, the best selling cars for the first half of 2007 mirror this gas mileage trend, with only 2 of the top 10 selling cars (the compact sedans Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic) beating the CAFE gas mileage requirements.

"U.S. online auto consumers love their sports cars and utility trucks," remarked Langley Steinert, co-founder and CEO of CarGurus. "While online consumers understand the gas crisis intellectually, they just don't seem willing to part with the cargo space and performance offered by utility trucks and sports cars. The interesting challenge for auto manufacturers is to find a way to offer consumers the total package of cargo space, performance and improved gas mileage. For example, hybrid trucks and pure electric sports cars are interesting products on the horizon that might be able to bridge this gap of consumer needs and environmental realities."

Announcing the Top 10 Most Popular Cars for the First Half of 2007

Over the last 6 months, with slightly under 1.5 million unique visitors, CarGurus collected the user ratings of all 2007 models. As of June 30, 2007, CarGurus tallied the number of ratings and the positive or negative nature of the ratings to create a mid-year overall popularity index of 2007 cars. Below are the top 10 most popular cars as of June 30, 2007 as voted on by visitors to www.cargurus.com

About CarGurus LLC

Located in Harvard Square, Cambridge MA, CarGurus LLC is an online automotive community founded by Langley Steinert, formerly Chairman and co-founder TripAdvisor LLC. CarGurus' founders, board, and investors bring a wealth of experience from such leading web companies as TripAdvisor, eBay, Expedia, and Yahoo. For more information about CarGurus visit us at www.cargurus.com.