Ten smart cars for teenagers

By Dan Lienert

updated 3:28 p.m. ET Feb. 7, 2006

The best new car you can buy for your kids is a Honda Civic sedan.

With a base price of $15,110, Honda Motor's entry-level vehicle is one of the least expensive cars on the market. It has the highest-possible frontal crash-test scores, it gets 40 mpg on the highway, and it has the highest-possible Consumer Reports ratings for predicted reliability and accident avoidance. And, as a bonus, it was just overhauled with hip, futuristic styling that is sure to keep it as popular among teenagers as it has always been.

In compiling the slide show that follows — a guide to ten smart new cars for teenagers — the Civic stood out as the best combination of value, safety, reliability and fuel efficiency. The slide show is a list of the new cars that best combine those attributes.

The first time we published this annual feature, we received comments from readers on the order of, "Who can afford to buy their kids new cars?" While we understand this concern, the aim of this section's editors is to provide readers information about the newest vehicles on the market. Because we run this particular feature each year, we need to focus only on new cars in order to make the piece newsworthy.

However, even if used cars would require their own discussion, we should point out that the same model is ordinarily a better deal as a used car than a new one, and if you have ever wondered how teenagers in your city are driving Infinitis or BMWs, the answer is often that they bought them used — or their parents are very, very generous.

Another key variable that plays a role in the cost of giving your kid wheels is the price of insurance. Different vehicle types generate different levels of insurance rates. Sports cars, for example, cost more to protect than hatchbacks because they tend to be driven more aggressively. Boys cost more to insure than girls. Newer cars, also, are generally more expensive to insure. So, parents, make sure you comparison shop insurance as much as you do cars.

Another financial tip is to consider leasing instead of buying. Many customers find leasing deals on new cars rewarding because they often make for monthly payments that compare to those of buying, but with much better option packages. You might find that leasing deals help a new car such as the Civic, for example, or the more upscale Honda Accord (which is also in the slide show), fortify your kids in safe, relatively luxurious accommodations for reasonable payments.

And while we're talking about how to proceed at the dealership, we must say it again: get side airbags and traction/stability control. Our research shows time and again that these are not only the most-effective safety modifications you can add to your car (if they're not standard, and it's a crime that they're not standard on every car), but also something to be considered vital. Toyota Motor's entry-level Corolla sedan, minus side bags, is one of the least-safe cars on the market, in terms of crash-test performance; with side bags, it is one of the safest.

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