CHARLOTTE — All these cars on the road, but it can still be hard to find one both safe and affordable, especially if you’re putting a teenager behind the wheel.
“Safety was the primary goal and then we wanted to keep it under $10,000 or under,” Chris Kramer told Action 9 investigator Jason Stoogenke.
She eventually landed on a 2012 Nissan Maxima for her daughter.
She bought it from Mike Hojnowski’s shop in Monroe. He focuses on refurbishing certain models almost exclusively for young drivers.
“Awful large responsibility placing youth in cars,” he said.
Consumer Reports and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety released their latest list of recommended vehicles for newly licensed drivers: 74 vehicles $10,000 or less, 48 more if you’re willing to spend up to $20,000, and 22 new cars. The list begins with certain Toyota Corollas, Honda Insights, Mazda 3s and goes on.
“We’re looking for vehicles that are not the smallest, lightest vehicles, also not the biggest, heaviest vehicles. We’re looking for vehicles that have limited horsepower. But generally speaking, these vehicles are ones that do well in our crash tests, do well in consumer reports, handling exercises,” IIHS’s Jessica Jermakian said. “This is a really important resource for parents who are looking for affordable vehicles and they don’t want to compromise on safety.”
You may be wondering about electric vehicles. The report says they can be just as safe, but the researchers said to remember: EVs tend to have greater pickup, so it’s something else parents should consider.
Obviously, you may want to factor in other criteria when choosing a car, like reliability, size, gas mileage, and insurance.
To see the list of cars the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety recommends, click here.
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