Fuel Efficiency of Cars and Trucks Since 1975 the average fuel efficiency of U.S. cars and light trucks (SUVs) has increased from 13.5 to 25.8 mpg, an increase of over 90%! A random sample of 40 cars from a large community got a mean mileage of 28.1 mpg per vehicle. The population standard deviation is 4.7 mpg. Estimate the true mean gas mileage with 95% confidence..