What Makes a Car Affordable?

Affordable is in the eye of the beholder…wait, that’s beauty. Either way, the reality is a car that’s affordable is one that offers you some form of savings over other vehicles in its class. Whether that’s because it’s cheaper to maintain it, its lower in overall cost to purchase and insure, or because it gives you a lot of car and fun for a price that’s easy to explain. Regardless of how you define affordable there are some cars you can depend on to be easy to maintain and reasonably priced while giving you good fuel mileage and a decent resale value because you will someday want to part with this car. Let’s take a look at some examples:

Small Cars – In the small to compact car category you typically get what you pay for, but many of these cars are offering you more for the money than others. Don’t be surprised to find niceties such as Bluetooth connectivity in a small car or a great audio system. These cars also typically don’t burn as much fuel as others, giving you great fuel mileage to be proud of. Two great examples in this class are the Chevrolet Spark and Toyota Corolla, which are both a bit different, but certainly offer you a lot for a little.

Midsize Cars – These are the cars most families drive and are also typically the commuter car during the week. This dual duty purpose of these cars makes them a great choice for most families to have a car they can count on to take them out to dinner or to the weekend getaway while also having a car that is able to get to and from the office with ease. The Mazda6 makes a great choice in this category as a fuel efficient and easy to maintain midsize car that’s also fun to drive.

Luxury Vehicles – Not heading to the realm of the names that stand above the others for luxury but by taking a step back into the world of the Buick and Lincoln names you can find some great equipment and comfortable driving at an affordable price. The benefit with some of these more affordable luxury cars is the fact that they typically have engines that can handle regular unleaded gasoline which saves you money at the pump. Look to the Buick Verano or even the Lexus ES as great choices in affordable luxury driving.

Crossover SUVs – The market has literally become littered with SUV choices, but one that still does the trick better than any others for your family is the Honda CR-V. Honda has built a reputation for reliability and resale value making the CR-V a smart choice. As a vehicle that’s meant to haul the family and offer the AWD settings that are needed when you encounter some foul weather along the way. Another good choice in this market is a Jeep Patriot which gives you some amazing off road features to enjoy and still has the resale value you want.

Hybrids – Hybrid vehicles are a bit of a different choice altogether. It used to be that you would only choose a hybrid if you were looking for better fuel mileage, but now you find these to be stylish and feature filled vehicles that offer great fuel mileage as well. When it comes to the hybrids on the market the Toyota name ranks at the top of the list with a line of Prius models to choose from for fuel efficiency but if the Prius isn’t for you the Camry Hybrid makes a great choice as well.

Pickup Trucks – If you need a large pickup truck to get a lot of work done you will spend a lot of money on the truck and on fuel. There really isn’t any way to get around that fact, but if you need a truck that can commute during the week without a load and then be a great weekend warrior you can step down to a midsize truck and have the right fit for you. With the larger trucks the GMC Sierra and Chevrolet Silverado make great choices, but the midsize truck you want to drive as a virtually maintenance free model that will give you the fuel mileage you want is the Chevrolet Colorado.