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With hundreds of new models rolling into showrooms, how on earth can we pick a best car or truck? We do it with a carefully honed scoring system that uses mostly objective criteria to pit similar vehicles against one another. The winners tend to sort themselves out.
See which cars earned Kiplinger's top honors for each of the categories below. You'll also get a quick scorecard on each that reveals pricing, specifications, maintenance and repair costs, insurance costs and resale value after two and four years. For up-to-date information and options pricing on any car of your choice, be sure to take Kiplinger's Car Finder for a spin. And for detailed information on all the cars in each category, pick up the December issue of Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine.
- Cars under $17,000
- Cars $17,000 to $23,000
- Cars $23,000 to $30,000
- Cars $30,000 to $40,000
- Cars $40,000 and over
- Sports cars
- Large SUVs
- Midsize SUVs
- Small SUVs
- Wagons
- Minivans
- Pickups
How we score them
In our scoring system, about 65% of all possible points are awarded for performance and value. We rank vehicles by resale value, power (based on horsepower and torque), fuel efficiency, front and rear legroom, headroom and cargo space. Because pickups are prized for their hauling ability, we score bed size and wheelbase rather than legroom.
Cars are rated within separate price categories. Minivans, pickups, sports cars, SUVs and wagons each have their own category, so we also score price by awarding more points for lower-priced vehicles.
Safety accounts for 20% of a vehicle's score, based on injury-claims data collected by the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) and the availability of features such as side-impact airbags, anti-lock brakes and traction control.
We test-drive new cars and make subjective judgments about interior design, exterior styling and dashboard layout. That assessment makes up the remaining 15% of the score.
Best in Class winners are the top-scoring vehicles in each category. Best New Car honors go to the new or significantly redesigned vehicle with the highest score. First for Safety awards are based on HLDI injury claims (and thus reflect the safety not only of the car but also of the people who drive them). Best Resale Value designations are for vehicles with the highest retained value after four years. Our Most Fuel-Efficient award is based on mileage in city driving, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
One note: Cars can win awards only in the lowest price category in which they appear.
THE NUMBERS
The December issue of Kiplinger's Personal Finance includes some figures you might find helpful when shopping for a good deal. Here's a list of the terms and definitions:
Suggested retail price/dealer cost. Retail price is what the manufacturer thinks the vehicle is worth, including adequate profit for the automaker and the dealer. Dealer cost (or invoice price) is what a dealership pays the manufacturer. It does not reflect the "holdback" -- a discount the dealer gets from the manufacturer to help pay the cost of borrowing money to finance its cars. Our prices come from Chrome Systems Corp., publisher of PC Carbook, and include destination charges. As prices change during the model year, you'll find updates in our Car Finder tool.
Kiplinger's target price. There's almost always some wiggle room on pricing, so you need an idea of how low you can reasonably go. Our target price starts with the dealer's wholesale cost (invoice minus the holdback) and adds a 4.5% profit. Of course, supply and demand -- plus your negotiating skills and persistence -- play a role in the price you'll pay.
Percentage of MSRP. This is a quick way to figure the target price for a car equipped differently from those in our tables. The stated percentage of sticker price is that car or truck's target price.
Resale value. This is an estimate of how much the car will be worth after two years and four years, expressed as a percentage of the suggested retail price. Our figures come from Automotive Lease Guide (www.alg.com), a Santa Barbara, Cal., publication known for the accuracy of its estimates.
Service cost. This is an estimate of what maintenance and unscheduled repairs will cost over five years, based on past records. IntelliChoice, publisher of the Complete Car Cost Guide and the Complete Small Truck Cost Guide, compiles the figures. The guides are available on CD-ROM for $39.95 each at www.intellichoice.com.
Insurance costs. To show the relative cost of insurance, we asked InsWeb, a leading provider of insurance quotes online (www.insweb.com), to estimate the annual premium for each vehicle for a policy offering $300,000 liability coverage and $500 deductibles for collision-and-comprehensive coverage for a 40-year-old California couple with a spotless driving record. Your actual insurance cost will depend on where you live, your age and your driving record.
Legroom. This year we added legroom for station wagons, minivans and SUVs. In SUVs, if the third-row seat is optional, the figure is in parentheses.
Cargo space. This is the space, in cubic feet, in a trunk or behind the second-row seat in a wagon, SUV or minivan.
Maximum payload. The maximum weight (passengers and cargo) a truck is designed to carry.
Torque. This measures how well a vehicle pulls heavy loads; the higher, the better.