Top Gear is out to show the world that you don’t need a brand new hybrid car with a $25k price tag to be eco friendly. Their goal: Build a car that can get 70 mpg for only $7,000 and can hit 60 MPH in under 7 seconds. It’s called…The Sipster.

The Top Gear.com American team choose a 1981 VW Rabbit. Classy and classic that Volkswagen is. The project just started but we wish them the best of luck out smarting a Toyota Prius while keeping the price in a recession friendly range. The blog will be updated with pics and the progress. We’ll be keeping a close on this one.