Wow, that's even worse! Sweet Jesus.
Similar here. Low 30s household here. If someone is talking 6 figures here it holds weight. It's a faily small town and decently far from 2 major cities. Mostly factory jobs here although if any of the advertising means anything here the pay is getting better. I drive 80-110 miles round trip for work depending on where I'm called to so it's centrally located for me. I'm sure there's plenty here that do the same.
I really never worried about efficiency much until I started having a longer commute. I'm just glad there's fun options for both gas and electric that work. It kind of sucks that premium versions of small efficient performance cars are hitting such premium markups. I'm sure the Civic Type R is ridiculous even if one could be found at a dealer. I would still consider a new GTI or Golf R, but the same thing, not easy to find. My local dealer hasn't had any in stock in a very long time and have been suggesting ordering one. I love the one I have now though, no need to replace it.