Supercars like the brand-new 740HP Ferrari F12berlinetta may be what most of us dream about, but when we…touch back on Earth, we have to face the harsh realities of life.

With the current fuel prices making stopping at a gas station almost as…cheerful as a visit to the dentist, it helps if your everyday means of transportation nips rather than guzzles fuel.

UK Banzai Magazine editor Joe Clifford and journalist Andrew Biddle took a Toyota Avensis Tourer powered by a 2.0-liter D4-D diesel engine linked to a six-speed manual transmission and traveled from one end of Britain to the other.

The run from Lands End to John o’Groats via Toyota’s Burnaston UK plant, where the Avensis is made, is a 900 mile (1,448 kilometers) journey. To be more precise, the odometer read 904.9 miles (1,455.9 kilometers) at the end of the three days it took the pair to reach their destination.

Although they did make a stop at Burnaston to see how Toyota’s D-segment model is built, they made the entire trip without stopping at a gas station.

That’s right: even though the car’s trip computer indicated a 580-mile range, they managed to coax more than 900 miles out of a 60-liter tank of fuel by driving in an “eco-friendly” way. This equates to an average fuel consumption of just 3.95 lt/100 km (71.5 mpg UK or 59.5 mpg US).

“The Toyota shrugged off the mileage with ease and showed such frugality for fuel that we wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it highly," Clifford commented.

Like all mainstream carmakers, from time to time, Toyota releases special edition versions of its current models to help spur sales. And just like most of these versions, Toyota's new Avensis Edition that was created for the German market provides additional standard equipment features for a discounted price and nothing more.

The Edition trim is offered on both the sedan and Combi (station wagon) variants of the Avensis and is based on the Life trim grade adding 17-inch light-alloy wheels painted in black and silver, seat heating for driver and front passenger, a heated windshield wiper tray, and privacy glass for the rear and rear windows (Combi only).

Customers of the estate model can also enhance the car's equipment level with a special "Business Package" for €1,000 that includes α navigation system, leather and Alcantara seats.

Prices in Germany start from €24,850 ($32,200) for the Avensis Edition sedan and from €25,850 ($33,500) for the Combi, with Toyota stating that buyers save up to €1,400 ($1,800) from the added equipment.

The European mid-size segment is feeling the pressure these days as consumers are fleeing towards premium offerings or different categories altogether like crossovers, abandoning cars such as the Toyota Avensis, which is expected to sell a little over 29,000 units in Western Europe this year, down from 55,706 in 2010, according to an IHS Automotive forecast.

While Toyota plans to offer a hybrid version of every model sold in the region by 2020, company boss Didier Leroy specifically excluded the Avensis when asked by Autonews Europe about the matter in a recent interview, casting a doubt in the car's future.

"Do we plan to introduce an Avensis hybrid? No," Leroy told Autonews. "Do we have a plan to introduce in the next five to seven years a hybrid model in the mid-sized segment? The answer is clearly, yes," he said adding, "It's very tough to be in the mid-sized segment in Europe".

IHS Automotive said the mid-sized segment in Western Europe will have its lowest sales this decade, tumbling to under half a million units in 2014, from over 800,000 in 2011. The auto industry analyst said it expects Honda to kill the Japan-made Accord in Western Europe in 2015, with the Avensis to be axed in 2018.

Theoretically, one option for Toyota could be to sell the North American Camry in Europe, though; it has attempted to do so in the past without much success.

Over the past few years, serious doubts have been cast on the future of many mid-size sedans in Europe, including the Avensis, but Toyota may not be done just yet, as these scoops suggest.

The question that arises here is whether Toyota is testing a facelift version of the current model or if this is a test mule for the next generation. The only difference we see through the camouflage is the modified front end with new headlamps.

Toyota introduced the current, third-gen Avensis in 2009 giving it a mid-cycle facelift in 2011, so the logical thing would be to expect a replacement within the next year, albeit only if the Japanese brand still wants to compete in Europe's mid-size segment.

Automotive analyst Tim Urquhart from IHS recently told Autonews that the category is on track to having its lowest sales this decade and that he expects "Toyota to end sales of the car in 2018".

If his prediction comes true, then Toyota may just apply one more facelift to the Avensis in 2015 to keep it relevant in the market before killing the series.

After the sighting of a sedan prototype last October, we now caught the estate version of Toyota's mid-size Avensis family car testing on the road.

All evidence points to another facelift for the third-generation Avensis, the second one after it was introduced in Europe in 2009, and not a test-mule for an all-new model.

Much like the Avensis saloon, the wagon will get a revised front end with a different grille, headlamps and bumper, possibly adopting the "X" face design seen on other recent Toyota models, including the Aygo mini, Mirai fuel-cell car and Yaris facelift.

New tail lamp clusters and a reworked rear bumper along with fresh colors and alloy wheels should complete the exterior updates.

It's been said that the Toyota may also replace the Avensis' current 124hp (126PS) 2.0-liter and 148hp (150PS) and 175hp (177PS) 2.2-liter turbo diesels with a pair of BMW Group units – they've already done it on the Verso minivan.

A world premiere at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show in March is very likely.

Toyota has officially revealed images of its 2015 Avensis D-Segment family car, featuring a new front end design and a couple of new engines. Curiously, this marks the second time this third-generation Avensis has received a facelift.

The current generation Avensis was revealed back in 2008 at the Paris Motor Show, followed by a successful press launch in Milan where journalists raved about its ultra-modern styling, its spacious cabin and high quality interior.

Three years later it had already received its first facelift, which compared to what we're looking at here, was a rather minor one. For 2015, the Avensis will take on front end features similar to those found on models such as the Auris and the Aygo - with all the design lines meeting towards the middle of the bonnet where the badge is.

The thin grille, large air intakes and dynamic looking headlights make this a more aggressive design than before - whether that's a good thing or not, is hard to say. Some felt that the 2009 Avensis was the best looking of them all.

Still no word on what the back of the car looks like, or the interior for that matter, but inside we can expect better looking materials, a few new gadgets (such as Safety Sense active safety technology) and maybe even a new layout.

The 2015 Avensis will also come with EU6 compliant engines and possibly even a hybrid unit - similar to what the Auris and Yaris have up their sleeves. Whether all this will be enough to even slightly challenge the might of the all-new Passat and Mondeo, remains to be seen.

The full reveal will take place in March at the Geneva Motor Show.