Which vehicles can provide you with savings on the used car market? Everyone is looking to save money but buying a new car with better mileage is not always the best option. If you were lucky enough to catch a Honda Insight from 2000-2006 you would have one of the most efficient vehicles on the road. Even though the car is a two seater, it makes a great commuter car. Most people commute solo, so this might be OK. Pros: 70(highway)/61(city)gas mileage, aerodynamic design, Honda quality as a used vehicle. Cons: Small dimensions, some models have no A/C, "low resistance" tire replacement cost, battery pack replacement a possibility. The small Echo (2000-2005) never really caught on in the US market and that is a shame as it is an inexpensive fuel sipper. With Toyota quality and many examples going for over 200k miles, this can be an great commuter car or for a broke college student on a budget. Pros: 41(highway), low cost of ownership, good resale value. Cons: Small dimensions, not a lot of creature comforts, used examples may be hard to find, center mounted speedometer and gauges.
The popular Prius has all but kick started a new fuel sipping mania in the US. Look for the model after it was redesigned in 2004. With gas prices running up all over the country in a short period of time. The car has a lot going for it such as a roomy interior and Toyota dependability. The space age looks though may turn some people off, but the incredible city MPG is hard to ignore. Pros: 48(city), 45(highway), incredible resale value, roomier than most fuel sippers. Cons: Funky styling not for all, not sporty even with touring suspension, reports of issues around 100k miles. For those looking for a shot of expresso while saving a the pump, the Jetta may fit the bill. Look for models redesigned after 2006. The Jetta TDI is the sole diesel in the high miles, used category. Equipped with a standard 2.0-liter, I4, 140-horsepower diesel engine it achieves an exceptional 41mpg on the highway.
It鈥檚 how wagons, minivans and even large sedans like the Taurus and Azera are disappearing. Simply put, no one wants to drive whatever their parents were driving. But step inside the Kicks and you may be greeted with a very different seating position. Unlike sedans, crossovers feature a far more upright driving position, where your feet are beneath you, rather than stretched out in front of you. The upright position gives you a slightly better view of the road in some cases. Like almost all cars today, the Kicks is loaded with technology. This model has a touchscreen with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay support. There is automatic climate control, heated seats and handy safety features like forward collision warning, blind spot monitoring, rearview camera and a 360-degree view when parking. There鈥檚 also a bright digital gauge cluster, which doesn鈥檛 look too bad. The materials aren鈥檛 the nicest, but this is an affordable car that punches above its weight class. You can tell that designers want crossovers to feel like an open room with some chairs in it, rather than a focused cockpit.
But jump into the Jetta and you get to see the benefits of a car that鈥檚 a class above. The quality of the car is much higher than what you鈥檇 get in a comparable crossover like the Kicks. There are better materials and fancier technology. Just looking at the quality, it seems like you鈥檙e getting more for your money in the Jetta than the Kicks. Like the Kicks, there鈥檚 a lot of technology in the Jetta, and much of it in the VW seems more impressive. There鈥檚 a large touchscreen with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, as well as a big, well-integrated virtual cockpit. The car features dual-zone climate control and overall, the design seems more driver-focused, like a sporty cockpit. This is common among many sedans, but some vehicles like the Corolla and Impreza also have open-concept-like cabins as well. Deciding what is better will come down to owner preference.
