Students thinking about buying an economical car better think fast according to Chris Probst, a long-time salesman at Doug Justus Auto Center in Knoxville, "Now is the best time to buy because [the] prices aren't going to do anything but go up." 

As gas prices rise with no end in sight, the prices of the most economical cars will do the same.  One might think this is a ploy for dealers to make a killing on each gas sipping car they offer, but Adam Gee, a used car salesman in Nashville says otherwise, "We can't find these things anywhere.  When we do find them, we have to pay a premium price for them, and that means we have to sell them at a premium price," he continues, "We don't like these rising prices at all, we hate em'."

"Now is the best time to buy because [the] prices aren't going to do anything but go up."  Chris Probst

Car dealers have seen a decrease in sales of 6 and 8 cylinder cars since late August, some up to a 50% decrease.  People are increasingly trading in their fuel inefficient vehicles like trucks and sport utilities for more efficient vehicles, mainly for long commutes.

For students in the market for a vehicle, these numbers mean it is time to act.  Probst says now is a great time to build credit and get a car, "I think it's a great idea [to get a car], if you are financially to that point...my best advice to you would definitely be to go to a credit union," he continues, "you will get a better interest rate and [you should] have as much money as you possibly can down for the car that way you can get the lowest payment, but it will definitely help with credit."

Some of the most affordable gas savers are older model Honda, Nissan, and Toyota 4-cylinder cars.  Students who can operate a manual transmission should look for a model that includes that option, as manual transmission cars get up to 5 more miles per gallon than an automatic transmission car.  Probst says the aforementioned models are the best but, "any sort of small, 5-speed, 4-cylinder car would work best."

For fuel mileage references, visit Fueleconomy.gov.  This site allows you to see the EPA fuel mileage of any car, along with its overall rating.  Upon finding a car, visit Kelley Blue Book or NADA to verify that the pricing is consistent with overall market price.

The video below is the full un-edited interview with Probst.