Temecula Drivers Ask: Which Truck Saves the Most on Gas?

Here in Southwest Riverside County, we love our trucks. They’re part of daily life—from contractors in Temecula and Murrieta hauling tools to families loading up for weekends in Idyllwild or the desert. But 2025 has brought a question I hear more and more as gasoline prices bounce around: which trucks actually sip fuel instead of guzzle it?

As someone who spends his days in the auto business—my name is Mark Lamplugh, Chief Marketing Officer for Tim Moran Auto Group—I watch the data closely. I’m not here to pitch you anything; I’m here to share clear, recent, third-party results so Temecula readers can make smart decisions. And the numbers are unambiguous: the Ford Maverick Hybrid sits at the top of America’s fuel-efficiency charts for pickups.

Autoblog’s latest roundup, published this week, ranks the Maverick No. 1 among the most efficient trucks in the country, citing a 38 mpg combined rating and noting that “no other gas-powered pickup gets close” to it. That echoes Autoblog’s broader guide to fuel-efficient trucks, which has consistently put the Maverick Hybrid at the head of the class.

Why the Maverick wins on fuel

The Maverick’s advantage isn’t an accident. Its compact size and hybrid powertrain are purpose-built for daily driving efficiency rather than brute-force towing. In its current form, Autoblog and others report EPA estimates up to 42 mpg city and 33 mpg highway (front-wheel-drive hybrid), which is exactly the pattern most locals will see—short hops, stop-and-go surface streets, and steady 55–65 mph stretches on Temecula Parkway or Winchester Road. That city figure in the low 40s is especially telling. Hybrids shine in urban duty cycles because they can shut the engine off at lights and recapture energy when slowing—think Old Town traffic on a Saturday or the Pechanga Parkway crawl after a concert. In other words, the Maverick’s real-world use case matches how many of us actually drive most days.

How it compares to other trucks in 2025

To be fair, buyers consider a spectrum of trucks—from compact “lifestyle” pickups to midsize and full-size rigs—and efficiency varies by class and configuration. Here’s how the Maverick stacks up against notable alternatives, using recent EPA-published or major-outlet-reported numbers:

• Hyundai Santa Cruz (compact): With a conventional gasoline engine, the Santa Cruz is rated up to roughly 25 mpg combined in its most efficient trims (front-wheel drive). That’s solid for a small truck, but it trails the Maverick Hybrid by a wide margin in combined and especially city fuel economy. Hyundai USA+1
• Toyota Tacoma Hybrid (midsize): The new i-Force Max hybrid prioritizes power and off-road capability. EPA listings and instrumented tests cluster around 23–24 mpg combined, depending on trim, which is more than a third lower than the Maverick Hybrid’s combined figure. If you need a body-on-frame midsize truck, that’s respectable—but it’s not efficiency-leader territory. Fuel Economy+2Car and Driver+2
• Full-size pickups and diesels: Today’s half-ton trucks can be efficient for their size, especially highway cruising. The Chevrolet Silverado 1500 with the 3.0-liter Duramax diesel posts EPA estimates as high as the mid-20s combined and up to the low-30s on the highway in certain configurations—excellent numbers for a full-size. But they still don’t approach a Maverick Hybrid’s combined rating, particularly in city driving. Meanwhile, independent testing and EPA references for the F-150 PowerBoost hybrid commonly land around the low-20s combined depending on drivetrain and trim, again well below the Maverick Hybrid. Clean Fleet Report

The bottom line: bigger trucks have improved, but physics is physics. More mass and frontal area mean more energy to move. The Maverick’s compact footprint and hybrid system are an efficiency play first, utility second—and that’s precisely why it leads.

Efficiency without giving up “truck stuff”

Efficiency only matters if the vehicle still does truck work. On that score, the Maverick Hybrid remains surprisingly capable for its size. Ford publishes up to 1,500 pounds of payload and available towing up to 4,000 pounds when properly equipped, which covers a lot of the weekend-warrior and light-duty needs around Temecula—home-improvement runs, dirt bikes to Cahuilla Creek, or small utility trailers. No, it won’t replace a three-quarter-ton for fifth-wheel towing, and it isn’t meant to. But for most daily chores, it does the job while cutting fuel bills dramatically.

Real-world context for Temecula drivers

If you commute locally—say, Redhawk to Old Town, French Valley to the Promenade, or Temecula to Murrieta—you’ll likely benefit from the Maverick Hybrid’s city-biased efficiency. Conversely, if your life is mostly long highway slogs at 75 mph or frequent heavy towing, full-size diesels or certain gas powertrains can look better on paper for highway-only miles (that’s where those 30-plus mpg highway ratings show up). But consider total cost of ownership: combined mpg is the figure that mirrors typical mixed driving, and that’s where the Maverick carries its biggest spread.

Autoblog’s ranking crystallizes that point: Maverick Hybrid at the top with 38 mpg combined; everything else—in compact, midsize, or full-size—slots meaningfully lower. U.S. News underscores the same takeaway for the 2025 market landscape: Maverick is the most efficient gas-powered pickup, period.

One question I often get is whether opting for all-wheel drive erases the hybrid’s edge. For 2025, Ford added an AWD option to the Maverick Hybrid, addressing a common buyer request. Reporting around the launch suggested only a small city-mpg hit versus FWD, which keeps the Maverick well ahead of rivals on efficiency even when sending power to all four wheels. If you spend winters in the mountains or regularly traverse muddy job sites, AWD Hybrid is now a practical, frugal choice.

Where the market is headed

Stepping back, the Maverick’s success is part of a broader realignment. Many shoppers want lower running costs without going fully electric—especially folks who occasionally tow or live in apartments without convenient home charging. Independent coverage has noted how Ford’s hybrid strategy is resonating with those buyers, and the sales momentum suggests these high-mpg, do-most-things trucks will only get more common on Temecula roads.

Final thought

For residents weighing capability against fuel spend, the data point in the same direction: If your use case is daily driving, light hauling, and weekend versatility, the Ford Maverick Hybrid is America’s fuel-efficiency champ among pickups—and by a margin that shows up in your monthly budget. That conclusion isn’t marketing spin; it’s pulled from recent, independent rankings and EPA-anchored figures.

I wear a marketing hat in my day job here in the valley, but I’m also a neighbor who wants people to have the facts. If you’re trying to match a truck to your actual life—commutes, errands, weekend runs down De Portola, and the occasional Home Depot haul—the most fuel-efficient choice in America right now is clear. And given the way our region drives, it’s hard to argue against the Maverick Hybrid as the sweet spot of efficiency and everyday utility.