Car Buying Advice

Begin by asking yourself some basic questions. Your objective is to find models that excel in the areas that matter to you.

At this point, you may find it helpful to subscribe to Consumer Reports Cars Best Deals Plus service. As you focus on the types of vehicles that best meet your needs, see our New vehicle Ratings comparison, (available to subscribers) to see the models within each category.

How many people will you carry?
Most vehicles will accommodate five people, although the center-rear position can be too uncomfortable in some cars to be considered a reasonable seating position. If you need to carry more people, you should look for a vehicle with a third-row seat. This includes all minivans and many SUVs. These vehicles can carry seven or sometimes eight people. Keep in mind that the third-row seats in some SUVs and wagons are small and appropriate only for children. It is possible to find a vehicle that can fit six-passengers by using a three-person front-bench seat. But the front-center position is small and typically equipped with only a lap belt which doesn't provide adequate protection in a frontal crash. A vehicle with a third-row seat is a better choice.

Anyone who has owned a two-door coupes will tell you that rear-seat passengers don't appreciate having to bend and twist just to get into a cramped and confined seating area. And folding the front seat forward so you can load groceries or secure a child safety seat in the back seat gets old fast.

How much cargo do you carry?
Most cars include a trunk that can accommodate luggage. For carrying more cargo or longer items, many vehicles have a rear seat that folds down, enlarging the trunk area. Some sedans have a front passenger seat that can fold flat to make it easier to carry extra-long items.

If you carry large items regularly, such as building or nursery supplies, or camping or sports equipment, you may find that a minivan, SUV, or wagon is better suited to your needs. These have a sizable cargo area that can be enlarged by folding down or removing the rear seats. Keep in mind that carrying passengers in a third-row seat significantly reduces the available cargo space.

A pickup is useful if you often carry loads that would dirty the interior or are taller than other types of vehicles can accommodate. A crew-cab model, with two full doors and two regular rows of seats, is an increasingly popular choice because it can seat up to five people.

If you prefer a smaller car but with maximized cargo-carrying ability, a hatchback is a good option. They often have more interior space than a similar-sized car with a trunk, and the rear hatch makes it easier to get large items in and out.

What type of driving experience do you prefer?
Quick acceleration, crisp handling, and responsive steering are important in any vehicle. If you’re an automotive enthusiast who enjoys driving and wants to feel the road and sense every aspect of the driving experience, those parts will probably be high on your priority list, so you’ll want a vehicle that excels in them. Most sports cars and many coupes, of course, fit the bill, but some make you sacrifice space for carrying passengers and cargo.

Many buyers were torn when considering this question, because they wanted a sporty, fun-to-drive car but needed the practicality of a four-door sedan or wagon. Today, there are a number of sedans and wagons that provide a good balance between the two. A common trade-off for sportier cars, however, is a firm, sometimes uncomfortable ride.

Many drivers place more importance on a comfortable driving experience. They like a softer ride, luxurious seats, plenty of convenience features, and isolation from the outside world. With the proliferation of luxury vehicles in recent years, you can now find a wide range of models that fit this mold, from family sedans to SUVs.

Perhaps you only need basic transportation--a reliable, economical, fuel-efficient car for commuting or to get you from point A to point B as comfortably as possible. While on paper there are a number of models that could fill this need, it’s still important to do your research. Within a given price range there are big differences in reliability, fuel economy, comfort, and overall value. The best way to size up a vehicle’s driving experience is to read the reviews in the profiles, then do a thorough test drive.

Is performance or fuel economy more important?
Some automakers are getting better at squeezing more power out of smaller engines, so family sedans such as the Hyundai Sonata and Toyota Camry, have four-cylinder engines that are more than adequate. Turbocharged cars, such as the Volkswagen Passat deliver more power from a small engine.

In general, we recommend that you first decide which type of vehicle is right for you and then look for one that gets good fuel economy for its class. If you want a 3-row SUV, for instance, you can save about $560 a year by choosing a 20-mpg Kia Sorento V6 instead of a 15-mpg Nissan Pathfinder V6 (assuming gasoline is $2.80 a gallon and you drive 12,000 a year).

Some of the best fuel-economy figures we've achieved have been with gasoline/electric hybrid and diesel models. They tend to provide better fuel economy than a similar-sized conventional vehicle. Hybrid models that have achieved the most miles per gallon in our tests include the Toyota Prius (44 mpg) Honda Civic Hybrid (37 mpg), Ford Fusion Hybrid (34 mpg), Toyota Camry Hybrid (34 mpg overall) and the Nissan Altima Hybrid (32 mpg). The Ford Escape Hybrid and Lexus RX 450h (26 mpg) provides the best fuel economy of any SUV we've tested. But hybrids don't necessarily save you money overall in the first few years.

Diesel cars usually get about 30 percent better fuel economy than similar gasoline-powered vehicles. Volkswagen has provided diesel versions of many of its models for years. Ultralow-sulfur fuel went on sale starting in October 2006. This allows automakers to lower nitrous oxide and particulate (soot) emissions.

Mercedes-Benz has recently introduced clean diesel versions of some of its models. The Mercedes-Benz GL350 BlueTec we tested got 19 mpg overall, compared with the 15 mpg we got in the V8-powered GL450 gasoline version. Volkswagen currently offers diesel Jetta sedans and wagons. The Jetta TDI wagon with manual transmission we tested got 36 mpg overall, compared with the 23 mpg that we got in the 2.5-liter gas version. Mercedes-Benz has new diesel versions of its E-Class sedan, GL- ML-, and R-Class SUVs. Audi has introduced a diesel version of the A3 hatchback, and BMW has diesel versions of its 3 Series and X5 models. Models from other manufacturers may be offered for sale in the future.

Which transmission do you want?
Most models are available only with an automatic transmission, which is the choice of most American car buyers. Many automatics now provide a manual-shift mode that works much like a manual transmission but without a clutch. Selecting gears yourself can make a car more enjoyable to drive. Manual-shift mode is also handy when driving in hilly or mountainous areas because it provides more control when shifting down on long descents, easing the burden on the brakes. A few automatics have a winter mode, where the transmission starts in second gear to improve traction on slippery surfaces. Manual transmissions which are often available in inexpensive or sporty models, provide better performance and fuel economy than automatics. Many drivers also find them more fun to drive. However, if you spend a lot of time in stop-and-go traffic, working the clutch a lot can become a chore. A recent design being used by some automakers is a computer-shifted manual transmission that works like an automatic but provides the sporty shift feel of a manual.

2WD, AWD, OR 4WD: How much traction do you need?
Most vehicles use two-wheel drive (2WD), where engine power is sent to the front or rear wheels. Front-wheel drive is used in most cars, wagons, minivans, and the two-wheel-drive versions of car-based SUVs because it’s space-efficient. It allows the car to have a smaller engine compartment, leaving more room inside for passengers and cargo. It’s also better than rear-wheel drive in slippery conditions because there’s more weight on the front wheels and they pull rather than push the car along the road. This helps prevent the rear end from sliding sideways in slippery conditions.

Rear-wheel drive places less demand on the front wheels, allowing them to be used primarily for steering. It’s commonly used on pickups and traditional truck-based SUVs that are designed to handle heavy-duty chores like towing. But rear-wheel drive is also popular on sports cars and high-performance sedans because of its contribution to good handling.

Traction control, available on late-model vehicles, helps maximize traction at the drive wheels by preventing wheel spin. It’s particularly useful when accelerating on a wet, snowy, or icy surface. If no drive wheel has grip, however, traction control won’t help. In wintry conditions, we’ve found that a two-wheel-drive vehicle with traction control can have more difficulty getting up a slippery slope than one with all- or four-wheel drive.

All-wheel drive (AWD) feeds power to all four wheels. It provides maximum forward traction and is especially helpful in slippery conditions and when driving over moderate off-road terrain. AWD is also helpful in rapidly changing conditions or when driving on a road with intermittent snow and ice. Its lightness and compactness makes it the system of choice for wagons, some minivans and pickups, and most car-based SUVs.

Although four-wheel drive (4WD) and AWD are designations that are often used interchangeably in advertising and brochures, the major difference is that 4WD incorporates low-range gearing, which helps in more challenging off-road conditions, such as traversing rocks or deep water, or tackling steep off-pavement hills. The majority of 4WD-vehicle owners, however, never come close to needing this capability.

Modern 4WD systems are either full-time, which means they can stay engaged all the time, or automatic, where the vehicle switches between two- and four-wheel drive depending on the driving conditions. But many pickups and some truck-based SUVs use part-time 4WD systems, which require the driver to manually shift between two- and four-wheel drive, limiting the vehicle’s ability to provide optimum traction when conditions becomes slippery. In addition, these vehicles can’t be driven on dry pavement when in 4WD mode without running the risk of severe drivetrain damage. Keep in mind that AWD and 4WD systems add considerable weight to a vehicle, compromising fuel economy.