Kelley Blue Book has announced its recommendations for the best cars for students going back to school, with the 2012 Hyundai Accent and 2007 Suzuki SX4 respectively receiving best new and used cars.
The vehicles chosen were based on: safety, affordability, versatility, reliability, cost of ownership, fuel economy, aesthetics and driving fun factor.
All cars had to be available for less than $18,000 using KBB’s pricing guide.
The Best New Back To School car is the 2012 Hyundai Accent.
According to KBB, “Like its bigger brothers the Sonata and Elantra, the 2012 Hyundai Accent appeals to a finely-tuned sense of value, putting a lot of equipment into a stylish, roomy package that competes more than favorably with competitors like the Ford Fiesta, Mazda Mazda2 and Honda Fit.”
The Best Used Back To School Car is the 2007 Suzuki SX4.
According to KBB, “It’s the least-expensive all-wheel drive car on the market and it comes with Suzuki’s no-deductible 100,000-mile seven-year powertrain warranty that’s also fully transferable.”
The top-5 Best New Back to School Cars:
5. Chevrolet Cruze; 4. Fiat 500; 3. Ford Focus; 2. Honda Fit; 1. Hyundai Accent.
The top-5 Best Used Back to School Cars:
5. 2007 Nissan Sentra; 4. 2007 Ford F150; 3. 2007 Kia Sedona; 2. 2008 Chevrolet HHR; 1. 2007 Suzuki SX4.
To read the entire KBB results, visit: Best Back To School Cars
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Article Last Updated: August 11, 2011.
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A sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004.
In addition to founding this site in 2004, James writes a Sunday automotive column for The San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times in Walnut Creek, Calif., and monthly auto review and wellness columns for Gulfshore Business, a magazine in Southwest Florida.
An author and contributor to many newspapers, magazines and online publications, co-hosted The Weekly Driver Podcast from 2017 to 2024.
The image you're using is not an Accent – it's an Elantra