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Guide to Choosing Cars

Green Guide   
If you’re shopping for a car on a budget, first consider these five financial factors that influence vehicle price:

1) The down payment or upfront cost 2) Monthly payment 3) Sales tax 4) Registration fees and 5) Insurance premiums

Next, determine how you would answer the following questions. Then, use the Key Feature filters (defined below) to sort the comparison based on your responses.

How much cargo and passenger space do you need? If you have a big family, a mini-van's third passenger row might be necessary. Or, if you have a boat, you’ll need a truck with towing capabilities. (Primary filters: Category, Fuel type)

What type of driving experience do you want? Zippy sports cars are often less practical and safe than a sedan. Regardless, you also need to decide if you prefer a stick (clutch) to an automatic transmission. (Primary filters: Drive type, Horsepower, Transmission)

Once you’ve used the filters to decide your price range and type of vehicle that best suits you, narrow down your choices to a short list of models that meet these requirements.

Finally, do a side-by-side comparison of your vehicle finalists to see how specific models stack up against one another. Once you have a few promising candidates, it’s time for the test drive…

Check out our separate Green Guide to Choosing Cars for ways to help the environment and save on gas costs with your new vehicle. Visit our Car Insurance Comparison, if you are in need of car insurance or are thinking about switching to another provider. If your vehicle needs new tires and you're not exactly sure which set to go with, head on over to our Tire Ratings Comparison to find out what matters when it comes to choosing new tires. With 1,332 cars to choose from, we can help you find the best one for your needs.

How to Find Cars

Smart Rating
The Smart Rating uses trusted critic sources to assign a normalized score to each car.

The Smart Rating has been designed to rank cars higher when they excel in multiple areas such as Performance, Safety, Fuel Efficiency, Fit & Finish, Appearance, and more, as defined by the experts. These experts include respected automotive industry publishers (such as Car & Driver, Motor Trend, Popular Mechanics, Yahoo! Autos, The Car Connection, and more), as well as auto safety institutions, such as the International Institue for Highway Safety and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

To get a better idea of why a certain car received the score that it did, take a look at the Awards, Reviews & Ratings section in the middle of its detail page to review how it was evaluated by the press.
Range
MinAverageMax
34.165
Fact: In our database, the top-rated car is the 2011 Hyundai Sonata GLS with an Overall Smart Rating of
100
.
Base Transmission
Gear Shift Type. A car’s transmission is the mechanism that controls its gears. Transmissions fall into three categories: manual (cars with a driver-operated clutch pedal), automatic (no driver operation), and manumatic (an automatic with a "manual mode" option operated via the drive selector on the center console or paddle shifters behind the steering wheel). Manufacturers offer a range of transmission options for most models. Whether you enjoy the ease of an automatic, or the added control and reduced cost of a manual, make sure to choose a transmission that suits your lifestyle. This comparison includes the transmission that comes standard in each vehicle. The benefits of driving a car with manual transmission lie in greater control over the car’s RPMs, which can help driving in inclimate weather. However, the technology in automatic transmissions today provides those cars with greater fuel efficiency through cleaner shifting.

Base Transmission Options: 
1-speed Direct Drive, 4-speed Automatic, 4-speed Automatic (with manual mode), 5-speed Automatic, 5-speed Automatic (with manual mode), 5-speed Manual, 6-speed Automatic, 6-speed Automatic (with manual mode), 6-speed Manual, 7-speed Automatic, 7-speed Automatic (with manual mode), 7-speed Manual, 8-speed Automatic, 8-speed Automatic (with manual mode), Continuously Variable, Continuously Variable (with manual mode), SynchroRev Match Manual
Category
Vehicle Body Style. For big families, a mini-van's third passenger row allows room for everyone. SUVs and station wagons will also have large interiors for bigger families. Hatchbacks, coupes, and sedans, however, will be smaller. Pickup trucks, on the other hand, offer more room for hauling and moving large objects.

Category Options: 
SUV / Crossover, Sedan, Hatchback, Coupe, Wagon, Pickup Truck, Minivan / Van, Convertible, Crossover
City Gas Mileage
City Gas Mileage is the estimated amount of miles expended per gallon during city driving (i.e. stop and go traffic). If you spend most of your time driving around town, look for cars with a high city Miles Per Gallon (MPG) estimate. Picking a car with a high city MPG saves you money at the pump.

Note: For electric vehicles, this number reflects MPGe (combined miles per gallon equivalent).
Range
MinAverageMax
919.96106
Fact: In our database, the car with the best city gas mileage is the 2011 Nissan Leaf SV, rated at 99 mpg in the city and 99 mpg on the highway.
Drive Type(s) Available
All Drivetrain Options. These are all of the drive type options available (including upgrades) for a given model: Front-Wheel Drive (FWD) cars are the most affordable, but their performance is limited since the front wheels take on all driving mechanics (e.g. steering and delivering power at the same time). Rear-Wheel Drive (RWD) cars tend to be more performance-oriented. The majority of sports cars fall into this category. However, this type of car is not ideal in bad weather conditions. All-Wheel Drive (AWD) and 4-Wheel Drive (4x4) vehicles are heavier and more expensive than other drive types, but their increased traction makes them the safest and the best suited for travel through rough roads and bad weather conditions.

Drive Type(s) Available Options: 
AWD / 4x4, FWD, RWD
Engine Configuration
Cylinder count and configuration. The engine type lists the cylinder count and often the configuration the cylinders are in (a V8 engine has 8 cylinders arranged in a "V" shape, with 4 cylinders making up each side of the V).

Engine Configuration Options: 
4-cylinder, 6-cylinder, V6, V8, 5-cylinder, V10, V12, 3-cylinder, W12, W16, Rotary, Electric Motor
Engine Size
Displacement (combined volume of all cylinders). Remember that a low-displacement turbocharged engine rivals a large engine that doesn't have a turbocharger. Choose larger engines if you need a car for things like towing, driving in the mountains or going fast. A larger engine usually means higher MSRP and lower MPG, so only look for a larger engine if you need and can afford it. Occasionally you can choose your desired engine size in model variations.
Range
MinAverageMax
13.507.30
Fact: In our database, the car with the largest engine is the 2011 Aston Martin One-77, which has a displacement of 7.3L.
Highway Gas Mileage
The Highway Mileage is the estimated miles per gallon expended during highway driving. If you spend most of your time on the highway, look for cars that get good Highway Mileage.

Note: For electric vehicles, this number reflects MPGe (combined miles per gallon equivalent).
Range
MinAverageMax
1327.1199
Fact: In our database, the car with the best highway gas mileage is the 2011 Nissan Leaf SV, rated at 99 mpg in the city and 99 mpg on the highway.
Horsepower
Max Power Output. Similar to engine size, more power usually means higher MSRP and lower MPG. Only look for more power if you need and can afford it. Additional horsepower may be available in other model variations (see additional engine options for details). (For hybrid vehicles, we report net horsepower, or the power of the electric motor plus the engine horsepower.)
Range
MinAverageMax
66275.48750
Fact: In our database, the car with the most horsepower is the 2011 Aston Martin One-77, which has 750 HP.
Torque
Torque refers to the "low-end grunt" of an engine, and is often a more useful figure than horsepower when it comes to everyday driving. This is because engines only achieve their advertised peak horsepower very high in the RPM range, while maximum torque is produced much earlier in the rev range.
Range
MinAverageMax
68272.40800
Fact: In our database, the 2012 Ford Super Duty F-450 XL has the most torque: Its engine is rated at 800 ft-lbs.
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What to Avoid in Cars

Vehicle Price:
When buying a car, it's important to keep in mind the total price. Dealers can use a variety of financing tools to make some of the most expensive vehicles "fit" your monthly budget, but such financing adjustments can add extra cost to the overall price of the vehicle. Additionally, be cautious of hidden, long-term costs associated with your new car. For example, higher priced vehicles cost more to insure and often cost more to maintain (e.g. higher prices for replacement parts).

Vehicle Size:
Before making a purchase, think about what you actually use your car for. Don't fall for the "bigger is better" trap when searching for the perfect car, unless you require the capabilities of a large engine vehicle for things like towing a boat, driving in the mountains or fitting large families, because it will cost you. Budget conscious people using cars to get to and from work everyday should reconsider a $50,000 luxury SUV that seats seven and tows 9,000 lb. Conversely, if you do require the power and size of a larger engine, look closely at each vehicle's capacity to avoid purchasing an underpowered or undersized engine.

Hybrid vs. Gas
While hybrids are more environmentally friendly than their gas-powered counterparts (due to low emissions and better fuel economy), they tend to be more expensive. Because hybrids get better gas mileage, they offer large savings at the pump. However, due to their higher initial price, the so-called "break-even" point is far down the road. Also note that, hybrids have smaller engines than similarly priced gas cars, which is one of the main reasons that hybrids get better gas mileage. So, if price is important and you are looking to get the biggest engine for your buck, a hybrid is not the way to go. But, if you have some extra cash to spend upfront, like seeing savings at the pump and want to do your part to help reduce emissions, a hybrid vehicle might be the right choice for you.

Most Popular Side-by-Sides for Cars

Expert Ratings Sources: Car and Driver, US News, Motor Trend, The Car Connection, Time, Popular Mechanics, About.com, Kelley Blue Book, IIHS, NHTSA, Yahoo! Autos, alg, greenercars.org, EPA Green Vehicle Guide
NOTE: The features, specifications, and ratings listed are for base models only and do not reflect all available options/option packages.
Images included on certain listings may not always reflect the exact options included with the trim associated with that listing.
Blank fields indicate the information has yet to be released by the manufacturer's official website.