Consumer Car Buying Advice Blog

US News partners with IntelliChoice for the second year to come up with 23 vehicles that will help consumers stretch their dollars which is especially important if they plan on financing their next vehicle with a bad credit car loan.

Making your dollars go further

At Auto Credit Express we realize that it’s always important to make your dollars go further, no matter what you’re buying. But when you purchase a big ticket item like a new vehicle, every percentage point you save is not just pennies or dollars; it can mean hundreds or even thousands of dollars in your pocket. This is especially important if you plan on financing your next vehicle with a bad credit car loan. That’s why the latest “Top” vehicle list from US News seems so timely to us.

To compile their list, U.S. News took their car rankings and combined this list with ownership data from IntelliChoice. The data includes a target price that consumers can expect to pay for the vehicle as well as the 5 year total cost of ownership data that’s reported by vehicle owners.

Here is what U.S. News had to say about the report:

“While car shoppers are starting to come back to the showrooms, they are looking for a good value more than ever before,” said Jamie Page Deaton, Lead Automotive Editor for U.S. News. “But ‘good value’ does not simply mean ‘cheap’. The Best Car for the Money awards recognize vehicles that can be the most rewarding to own – namely those that win the most praise and offer the most compelling overall value.”

IntelliChoice had this to say about the list:

“There is no question that car shoppers are now paying more attention to total ownership costs such as resale value, fuel economy, and other factors,” said Charlie Vogelheim, Executive Editor of IntelliChoice.com. “Taking into account these real world costs as well as U.S. News’s unbiased car rankings, the Best Car for the Money awards identify vehicles that should make any car shopper’s short list.”

Here is what we say:

Picking out a car based on an IntelliChoice ranking is a little like asking for car buying advice from your accountant. You will undoubtedly be pleased with the impact on your bottom line during the vehicle’s ownership, but you might find the rest of your experience lacking. But if you combine this information with another metric – the overall driving experience as well as the style and substance of a vehicle – such as the 2009 Car Rankings by U.S. News, you should end up with a more well-rounded choice.

So if you’re looking for entertaining as well as bottom-line friendly vehicles, the folks at U.S. News hereby present the Best Cars for the Money award vehicles in 23 categories (along with a few of our comments):

Subcompact Cars
Nissan Versa
(Comment: The Versa 1.6 is one of the least expensive vehicles available in the new car marketplace that offers decent road manners.)

Compact Cars
Hyundai Elantra
(Comment: The Elantra is a bit of a surprise, since the Honda Civic and Mazda3 are better performers and also hold resale value better. It’s also the Elantra’s second year on the list)

Hatchbacks
Honda Fit
(Comment: Two years in a row, as the Fit made last year’s list as a Subcompact Car. The benchmark of small cars, the second generation Fit also made Car and Driver Magazine’s 10 Best List as well)

Midsize Cars
Toyota Camry
(Comment: The best selling midsize sedan in the U.S., although the Camry has had recent issues with quality. It’s the second year on the list for the Camry, as well.)

Family Sedans
Ford Taurus
(Comment: Ford has a hit on its hands with the new Taurus. As a family hauler, there are few better and the SHO version is there for drivers with more sporty aspirations)

Upscale Compact Cars
Volkswagen GTI
(Comment: The original hot hatch is all-new for 2010 and continues to be the benchmark for its class.)

Upscale Sedans
Hyundai Genesis
(Comment: The Koreans enter the luxury segment with a sedan that’s a worthy competitor to any in the class, even though it is out of the price range of most bad credit customers.)

Luxury Sedans
Acura RL
(Comment: If you can get past the odd-looking shovel nose, the RL offers the famous quality of a Honda with all the luxury you’ll ever need, although it won’t fit the budgets of most bad credit car loan customers.)

Affordable Sports Cars
Mazda MX-5 Miata
(Comment: Although originally designed with the Lotus Elan in mind, the Miata has become a classic 2-seater in its own right and appears on the list for the second year in a row.)

Luxury Sports Cars
Chevrolet Corvette
(Comment: Not for bad credit customers, the Corvette, one of the world’s finest sports cars, is also one of the most affordable.)

Compact Crossovers/SUVs
Honda CR-V
(Comment: The CR-V is roomy, comfortable and one of the most fuel-efficient SUVs available in the U.S.)

Midsize Crossovers/SUVs
Toyota Venza
(Comment: The Venza is better than a station wagon and more stylish than a minivan.)

Full Size SUVs
Toyota Sequoia
(Comment: Not really for bad credit customers, but if you really must still have one of these, the Sequoia has an excellent resale value.)

Luxury Compact Crossover/SUVs
Infiniti EX
(Comment: Based on the G35 sedan, the pricing of the EX puts it above most bad credit buyers.)

Luxury Midsize Crossover/SUVs
Lexus RX
(Comment: Based on a front-wheel-drive platform, the RX delivers a car-like ride and Lexus quality and reliability and starts at about 38K and appears for the second year in a row on the list.)

Luxury Full Size SUVs
Toyota Land Cruiser
(Comment: With a base price closing in on 65K, bargain is a relative term.)

Hybrid SUVs
Lexus RX Hybrid
(Comment: Ditto the RX in hybrid form.)

Off-Road SUVs
Toyota FJ Cruiser
(Comment: Although it suffers from poor visibility, the base FJ comes in at around 25K.)

Minivans
Honda Odyssey
(Comment: Along with the Toyota Sienna, the Odyssey is at the top of the not-so-mini-anymore minivan class with a resale value that is second to none.)

Wagons
Volkswagen Jetta SportWagen
(Comment: Although not as affordable as many vehicles in its class, the Sportwagen offers practicality and fuel efficiency – especially with the TDI diesel option.)

Compact Pickups
Toyota Tacoma
(Comment: The Tacoma is the Toyota of compact pickups. Enough said.)

Full Size Pickups
Ford F-150
(Comment: Last year we mentioned that the “Silverado was something of a surprise on this list, as the new Ford F-150 would seem a better choice.” We still feel that way.)

The Bottom Line

While many of these vehicles hardly fall into the “frugal” category, they are all among the best buys in their respective segments and certainly represent good values for your vehicle dollar. As a bad credit car loan customer, some of the more affordable vehicles would be an excellent choice for your next car.

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