--- title: Why Your Next Commuter Car Could Be … a Pickup Truck? description: Diesel versions of the Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon are the first pickup trucks to get over 30 mpg on the highway. authors: - name: Brad Tuttle role: Senior Editor url: https://money.com/author/brad-tuttle/ bio: Brad Tuttle is a former senior editor at Money with over 10 years’ experience covering a vast number of personal finance topics, including careers, cars, travel, budgeting, investing, insurance, credit cards, consumer psychology, real estate, banking, and shopping and deals. education: Columbia University School of Journalism, MS at_money_since: 2014 articles: 366 covers: - Lifestyle - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Economy and Politics - Education - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Pets - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes - Technology social: - https://twitter.com/bradrtuttle - https://linkedin.com/in/brad-tuttle-834b225 former_staff: true published: '2015-11-10T17:00:14.000Z' modified: '2024-04-16T07:30:57.000Z' section: Lifestyle tags: - Autos - cars - diesels - fuel economy - mileage - mpg - Volkswagen word_count: 325 canonical: https://money.com/diesel-pickup-truck-gas-mileage/ type: Article source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![2016 GMC Canyon](https://img.money.com/2015/11/151110_em_commutercar_gmc.jpg?crop=0px%2C162px%2C2100px%2C1181px&quality=85) *2016 GMC Canyon* Say the word "diesel" nowadays and odds are, the first thought that comes to mind is the [enormous Volkswagen scandal](https://money.com/volkswagen-epa-diesel-scandal/?iid=sr-link5), in which the German automaker has been forced to recall millions of diesel-powered vehicles after admitting the cars had been equipped with software to mask the pollution they emitted. But just a couple of years ago, observers were [praising "clean diesels"](http://business.time.com/2013/08/23/2014-may-turn-out-to-be-the-year-of-the-diesel-engine/) for their environmental friendliness and terrific mileage. Now, thanks to news about impressive fuel efficiency improvements to two General Motors diesel-powered pickups, perhaps the VW-related taint concerning diesels will begin fading a little. According to the latest fuel economy ratings from the [Environmental Protection Agency](http://www.fueleconomy.gov/), both the 2-wheel-drive diesel versions of the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon Diesel now get 22 mpg in city driving and 31 mpg on the highway. They're the first pickup trucks to be EPA-certified for highway mileage over 30 mpg. For automakers, crossing that threshold is a big deal. "Cracking the 30-mpg mark has been truckmakers’ goal for some time, so for the 2-wheel-drive mid-size GM twins to do so while still offering 7700 pounds of towing (4WD versions are rated for 100 fewer pounds) is most certainly a win," a [*Car and Driver* post](http://blog.caranddriver.com/2016-chevrolet-coloradogmc-canyon-diesel-fuel-economy-released-epa-conformity-confirmed/) stated. Meanwhile, "Four-wheel-drive models boast still-impressive 20/29 ratings." As [*Automotive News*](http://www.autonews.com/article/20151109/OEM06/151109818/chevy-colorado-gmc-canyon-diesels-first-pickups-to-top-30-mpg-on) noted, until the new EPA ratings were released, the previous most fuel-efficient pickup was the Ram EcoDiesel, rated at 29 mpg for highway driving. Obviously, that model runs on diesel gas too. Bear in mind that just because these vehicles get better mileage than their gas-powered counterparts, they aren't necessarily cheaper to own in the long run. Diesel fuel costs more than regular gas—the national average for diesel is roughly 25¢ higher, per [AAA](http://fuelgaugereport.aaa.com/todays-gas-prices/)—and the diesel cars themselves are pricier as well. Drivers can also expect to pay a premium of perhaps $3,500 to $4,000 more for a diesel pickup over a gas-powered V6. **Read Next: [These Are the Least Reliable New Cars](https://money.com/new-car-reliability-consumer-reports/)** ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://money.com/diesel-pickup-truck-gas-mileage/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://money.com" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Lifestyle", "item": "https://money.com/lifestyle/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Travel", "item": "https://money.com/travel/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Why Your Next Commuter Car Could Be … a Pickup Truck?" } ] }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://money.com/#website", "url": "https://money.com", "name": "Money", "publisher": { "@id": "https://money.com/#organization" } }, { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://money.com/diesel-pickup-truck-gas-mileage/#webpage", "url": "https://money.com/diesel-pickup-truck-gas-mileage/", "name": "Why Your Next Commuter Car Could Be … a Pickup Truck?", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://money.com/#website" }, "datePublished": "2015-11-10T17:00:14.000Z", "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://money.com/diesel-pickup-truck-gas-mileage/" }, "inLanguage": "en-US", "breadcrumb": { "@id": "https://money.com/diesel-pickup-truck-gas-mileage/#breadcrumb" }, "dateModified": "2024-04-16T07:30:57.000Z" }, { "@type": "Article", "headline": "Why Your Next Commuter Car Could Be … a Pickup Truck?", "articleSection": "Lifestyle", "image": [ { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://img.money.com/2015/11/151110_em_commutercar_gmc.jpg?crop=0px%2C162px%2C2100px%2C1181px&quality=85", "width": 1012, "height": 569, "caption": "151110_EM_CommuterCar_GMC" } ], "author": [ { "@type": "Person", "name": "Brad Tuttle", "url": "https://money.com/author/brad-tuttle/", "@id": "https://money.com/author/brad-tuttle/#author", "description": "Brad Tuttle is a former senior editor at Money with over 10 years’ experience covering a vast number of personal finance topics, including careers, cars, travel, budgeting, investing, insurance, credit cards, consumer psychology, real estate, banking, and shopping and deals.\r\n\r\n", "image": "https://img.money.com/2014/01/Brad-Tuttle.png?w=226&h=247&crop=1", "alumniOf": "Columbia University School of Journalism, MS", "sameAs": [ "https://twitter.com/bradrtuttle", "https://linkedin.com/in/brad-tuttle-834b225" ] } ], "publisher": "https://money.com/#organization", "datePublished": "2015-11-10T17:00:14.000Z", "description": "Diesel versions of the Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon are the first pickup trucks to get over 30 mpg on the highway.", "abstract": "Diesel versions of the Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon are the first pickup trucks to get over 30 mpg on the highway.", "@id": "https://money.com/diesel-pickup-truck-gas-mileage/", "inLanguage": "en-US", "dateModified": "2024-04-16T07:30:57.000Z", "wordCount": 325, "keywords": [ "Autos", "cars", "diesels", "fuel economy", "mileage", "mpg", "Volkswagen" ], "about": [ { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Lifestyle", "sameAs": [ "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lifestyle" ] }, { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Travel", "sameAs": [ "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Travel" ] } ] } ] } ```