How best to spend your money on a used vehicle this year?
Here’s a handy “driver assist” for that buying journey. Auto research site iSeeCars.com has named its best preowned cars for 2020 following analysis of more than 20 million vehicles.
Long-term reliability, value retention and a high average safety rating (at least four out of five stars from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) separate these models from the rest.
The top picks fall into categories encompassing passenger cars, SUVs, trucks, minivans, sports cars, electrics and hybrids, along with their runners up. These arenas are dominated by Toyota, while the Japanese automaker also shows well in rankings by price point.
iSeeCars.com used its analysis to lay out the best 5-year-old cars for under $15,000, $20,000 and $30,000, in addition to the top 3-year-old vehicles for budgets of $20,000-$30,000.
Take a look through to help guide or refine your search.
Best used cars by category
Best SUV – Toyota 4Runner
Runner-up – Toyota Highlander
Best passenger car – Honda Civic
Runner-up – Toyota Corolla
Best pickup truck – Toyota Tacoma
Runner-up – Honda Ridgeline
Best minivan – Toyota Sienna
Runner-up – Honda Odyssey
Best sports car – Ford Mustang
Runner-up – Dodge Charger
Best hybrid car – Toyota Prius
Runner-up – Toyota Camry Hybrid
Best EV – Tesla Model S
Runner-up – Chevrolet Volt
Best luxury car – Lexus ES 350
Runner-up – Mercedes-Benz E-Class
Best luxury SUV – Acura MDX
Runner-up – Volvo XC90
Best used cars under $15,000
With vehicle type and average used-car price
Honda Accord, passenger car, $14,242
Toyota Prius, hybrid, $13,460
Subaru Legacy, passenger car, $13,151
Toyota Camry, passenger car, $13,033
Honda Civic, passenger car, $12,518
Toyota Corolla, passenger car, $11,599
Toyota Yaris, passenger car, $8,804
Best used car under $20,000
With vehicle type and average used-car price
Honda Pilot, SUV, $19,677
Honda Odyssey, minivan, $18,960
Toyota Sienna, minivan, $18,523
Ford Mustang, sports car, $17,226
BMW 3 Series, luxury car, $16,766
Audi A4, luxury car, $16,608
Honda CR-V, SUV, $16,013
Buick LaCrosse, luxury car, $15,680
Best used cars under $30,000
With vehicle type and average used-car price
Toyota 4Runner, SUV, $27,064
Chevrolet Silverado 1500, pickup truck, $24,829
Mercedes-Benz E-Class, luxury car, $23,650
Toyota Highlander, SUV, $23,211
Honda Ridgeline, pickup truck, $23,180
Toyota Tacoma, pickup truck, $22,360
Lexus ES350, luxury car, $20,024
Best 3-year-old cars $20,000-$30,000
With vehicle type and average used-car price
Chevrolet Silverado 1500, pickup truck, $29,535
Toyota Highlander, SUV, $28,734
Toyota Tacoma, pickup truck, $28,296
Lexus ES 350, luxury car, $26,984
Toyota Sienna, minivan, $25,043
Honda Odyssey, minivan, $24,444
BMW 3 Series, luxury car, $23,485
Ford Mustang, sports car, $23,484
Honda CR-V, SUV, $20,093
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Written by:
With 10 years of experience in auto finance, Rob Looker helps car shoppers find the right vehicles with the right financing so they can enjoy the road ahead. When he’s not creating content, he’s often behind the wheel, exploring new…
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