Weird little cars

Make that very old weird little cars. I have noticed a strange phenomenon here on the highways and byways of the uplands. Since the surge in gas prices a few months ago (which has not abated much up here - gas is still $3.75 a gal) I have seen an odd assortment of cars on the road that I thought had gone to the automotive equivalent of the elephants' graveyard years ago.

Old beat up Geo Metros, ugly old Ford (actually Kia) Aspires, and even one or two Ford (nee Mazda) Festivas. This morning I even saw an electric green Metro that looked like it had just rolled off the showroom floor. Where have they been keeping these things all these years? They seem to be popping out of the woods around here.

What do they have in common? It certainly is not design or build (well, except for the Festiva).

They all got, or get, 35 mpg or more.

I rented a Metro once. It was like driving a "foreign car" from the late 60s.