March 12, 2013—Consumer Reports (CR) has named the Toyota Prius, Hyundai Elantra, Toyota Camry, Infiniti M, Honda Pilot and Mazda CX-9 as the best used cars for the money in their Best & Worst Used Cars list for model years 2003 through 2012.
The report highlights the best sedans, SUVs and small cars available in prices ranging from $10,000 or less up to $25,000.
Each car chosen performed well in CR’s testing when new and had above-average reliability for the model years shown.
"With so many choices, shopping for a used car can be overwhelming, said Rik Paul, auto editor, CR. “Our report provides a much-needed cheat sheet that Americans can refer to for help getting the best and most reliable used car that fits their budget.”
The worst used cars list includes models that have had multiple years of much-worse-than-average overall reliability. Among the models that made the list are the BMW 7 Series, Ford Explorer, Kia Sorento, and Mini Cooper S.
Although most gas and electric hybrid cars have shown superior reliability in the past decade, the Honda Civic Hybrid is an exception. Almost one in five owners of the 2009 model years Civic Hybrid needed a replacement battery in CR’s 12-month survey period, according to CR’s Annual Auto Survey.
