Attention, Cheapskates: Here Are the Most Affordable Cars to Own in Every Segment

There are few things sweeter in life than bragging to your friends and family about the good deal you just negotiated on a new car. They certainly won’t care, but the amount of self-satisfaction received from reminding yourself that you are a force to be reckoned with at the dealership is immeasurable.

Of course, the bargain in the driveway can turn into a money pit once you calculate all the costs associated with vehicle ownership. Fuel costs, financing, insurance, and depreciation can all add up — especially if you purchased the wrong model. So what’s a thrift-obsessed shopper to do, calculate the total cost of ownership on every model in every segment over a five-year period to determine which is the best value overall?

Don’t be ridiculous, someone has already done that.

This week, Kelly Blue Book released the seventh edition of its 5-Year Cost To Own Awards. The list encompasses practically every segment in existence, taking into count all aspects of the cost of ownership: MSRP, depreciation, financing, insurance, state fees, plus the estimated costs of fuel, routine maintenance, and repairs.

Out of all the manufacturers, Hyundai fared the best for the second year running. In addition to providing a highly competitive point of entry into most mainstream segments, it’s also a manufacturer that includes quite a bit of kit as standard on most 2018 models and provides that super-dope warranty. On the luxury side of things, KBB crowned Acura for similar reasons.

As for the individual models, the absolute cheapest to own was the 2018 Chevrolet Spark. Starting at less than $14,000, the Spark it greasy with affordability right off the bat. However, it also boats decent resale for the subcompact segment and stellar fuel economy for a model without electrification. Its five-year cost to own was roughly $600 lower than both the Kia Rio and Hyundai Accent, which took second and third in affordability. All three came in just under a $30,000 after five years of ownership.

For compact cars, the 2018 Toyota Corolla iM took top honors as the cheapskate special with a $30,856 five-year cost. While only marginally higher than the winners in the subcompact segment, the Corolla iM still managed to be over a grand cheaper to keep than the Kia Soul (the third-place finisher) and about a hundred bucks less than the Hyundai Elantra. But would you really rather own the Toyota just because it’s a little less overall?

Jumping up in price a bit for the midsize segment, showed the 2018 Hyundai Sonata as the bargain-hunter’s dream. It was followed closely by the Kia Optima and Toyota Camry.

The most affordable full-size sedans included the Chevrolet Impala, Toyota Avalon, and Dodge Charger — all of which incurred a ten grand premium against their 2018 midsize counterparts.

For enthusiasts on a budget, the Honda Civic Si was the top choice. Its $33,484 five-year cost to own put it way out in front of the second and third place finishers: Ford’s Focus ST and Mini’s John Cooper Works hardtop.

Chevrolet’s Camaro managed to be the most affordable sports car money could by at an average of $43,629 over five years. It was followed by Dodge Challenger and, interestingly enough, not the Ford Mustang. Instead, KBB chose the Audi S3 with it’s comparatively colossal five-year fee of $56,836. How in the hell can that be right?

The Mustang did appear in the high-performance category in the Shelby GT350 trim. However, it’s $71,918 five-year cost of ownership put it far behind Dodge’s SRT versions of the Charger and Challenger — which came in at $59,324 and $53,656, respectively.

In entry-level luxury, Acura ILX was only slightly more expensive than a mainstream midsize sedan. Significantly more expensive to own, yet still affordable within the segment were the Buick Regal Sportback and Mercedes-Benz CLA.

Were making an assumption here that luxury shoppers even care about cost of ownership but, if they do, the 2018 Lexus GS. At roughly $60,000 to run over five years, it was the cheapest option. The GS was pursued by the Cadillac XTS and Audi A6. Meanwhile, Porsche’s Panamera was the best-value for high-end luxury — followed by the Lexus LC and Audi A8.

Getting back to reality, the 2018 Toyota Prius C wound up being the cheapest hybrid to run at $33,454 over a five-year span. Right behind it was the Kia Niro and standard Toyota Prius. Slightly more expensive to own were the full-electric vehicles, with the Nissan Leaf being far-and-away the most affordable at $38,258 over half a decade. Chevrolet’s Bolt finished second at a significant premium while the BMW’s i3 took third with an almost ludicrous $55,690 five-year cost of ownership. Tax credit or no, that’s way too much money for an economy focused vehicle.

While somewhat more expensive to own than traditional cars, crossovers and SUVs ran a much tighter race against each other. In the subcompact category, the Honda HR-V took first (averaging $32,874 over five years) with the Mazda CX-3 and Toyota C-HR in semi-hot pursuit.

Interestingly the slightly larger compact SUV/Crossover segment turned out to cost roughly the same to own as their smaller brethren — if not cheaper in some cases. Subaru’s Crosstrek was the most affordable, followed very closely by the Jeep Wrangler (thanks to its ultra-high resale value) and Kia Sportage.

Midsize SUVs were, again, only slightly more expensive to live with over five years than their compact counterparts with Jeep Wrangler Unlimited being the best bargain. The Mitsubishi Outlander and Hyundai Santa Fe Sport, which took second and third, were noticeably more expensive however.

Onward and upward we have the full-sized big boys. Large SUVs represented a substantial price increase. While all of the smaller winners ranged between $32,000 and $38,000 over five-years, the 2018 Chevrolet Tahoe came in at a whopping $62,167. It was followed closely by the Ford Expedition and Chevrolet Suburban.

Things were a little more incremental in the luxury SUV segment. For the smallest examples the Buick Encore ($38,607 over five years), Infiniti QX30, and Lexus NX were the best values. A midsize analysis showed the Infiniti QX60 as the most affordable ($38,607 over five years) with the Acura MDX and Lexus RX right behind it. The Infiniti QX80 ended up being the cheapest huge luxury SUV at $78,170 and it kept its distance from both the Lincoln Navigator and Toyota Land Cruiser.

Among trucks, Toyota’s Tacoma ended up being the best value for 2018. Its $37,083 five-year price was about a grand less than both the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon. Full-sized trucks were even closer with the Ford F-150’s $48,362 average five-year fee being just a few hundred bucks away from the Chevrolet Silverado. The 2018 Toyota Tundra came in a slightly more distant third place.

Last, but never least, we have the minivan segment — which beat the piss out of the full-size SUV category in terms of value. Honda’s Odyssey ended up being the best bargain at $45,279 over five years. It was followed by the Toyota Sienna and Kia Sedona.

[Image: General Motors]