Econobox

Econobox is a United States informal slang term for a small, boxy, fuel-efficient economy car with few luxuries and a low price.

[1] Japanese automakers were leaders at producing smaller, fuel-efficient cars, as well as enjoying generally higher reliability and build quality than their US counterparts,[2] so their offerings such as the Honda Civic[3] generally outperformed their American competitors such as the Chevrolet Vega and Ford Pinto.

American car manufacturers in North America have typically had a hard time making money off of econoboxes, and they consider them "loss leaders" that only existed to meet CAFE fuel economy standards.

For example, the Austin Mini and VW Beetle have been revived as enthusiasts luxury cars, rather than cheap transportation for the masses.

Meanwhile, the Toyota Corolla, Mazda 3 and the Honda Civic started as subcompact econoboxes but are now on the high-end of the compact size line.