i am currently building a car for my girlfriend and myself, that should get at least 60mpg.  its based roughly on the urbacar plans, that were originally based on a pedal car featured in the mid 70's mechanix illustrated.  i'm changing the wheels from small car tires to motorcycle tires, swapping the drum brakes to disk brakes, and using an aluminum frame instead of steele.  the plans call for the car to weigh in at about 800 lbs.  with the changes i'm hoping to bring it down to about 450 lb.  the only drawback to the motorcycle wheels will be traction in soft loose sand or snow.  by bumping the engine size up from 16hp to 20hp, i can add ac, and 60 amp charging system.  a heating system similar to the old vw bug heat exchange will supply more than enough heat for winter in florida, and streamlining the body will increase top speed to about 70 mph, i hope. 

just about everything needed to build this modern wonder of the gas use, can be found on ebay.  all you really have to have at home are basic hand tools (and a nearby machine shop) and a welder.  if you have everything ready when you start the basic car (frame and drive train), can be built in a couple weekends.  i havent tackled the body yet so i cant tell you how long for that.  so far my best estimate for the whole thing is about $3000.

anyone that would like to find out more about this project is welcome to get in touch with me and we can discuss it at more length. 

happy building and motoring.