Best Compact Cars of May 2011

It's probably no surprise, but the best value compact car is the Hyundai i30. However, it's not the Trophy trim level that is on sale at the moment which offers the best value, but the standard Diesel. True the car is over $25,000 in price but the 4.7L/100km consumption from its frugal diesel engine means you save money in the long run.



Coming in second place is the Mitsubishi Lancer SX. The fuel consumption is reasonable for a petrol car (7.6L/100km) but the main reason it's good value is thanks to its incredibly low purchase price of $20,990. To give you an idea, the Toyota Yaris is more expensive than this car, and it's smaller..



Thanks to a most recent sale, the Volkswagen Golf is also a viable option, slotting in at third place. While the Golf is still pretty pricey with its upfront costs when compared to the competition, thanks to German engineering, its engine is a real miser when it comes to fuel consumption.

Best Light Cars of May 2011

In terms of pure value for money, the Ford Fiesta is the best in this class. For around $20,000 you can get a car with miserly fuel consumption (4.4L/100km in fact) although you'll need to buy the Diesel version to enjoy it.



Coming (a very close) second place is the new Suzuki Swift which is the best value petrol light car you can get.



In third place we have the Ford Fiesta's cousin, the Mazda 2 Maxx which somehow has a slightly higher fuel consumption than the cars in first and second place.

New scoring criteria

With ever-rising fuel prices, I became curious to think whether in the long run (or at least 10 years) whether it was worth buying a hybrid car or a diesel variant of a particular car compared to the petrol ones (which I've usually been reviewing). Often a hybrid or a diesel is more expensive, but maybe the initial cost would outweigh the long term fuel costs for some of these models?

Consequently I raised the limit to $35,000 for a new car so I could include at least one hybrid, the Honda Insight. This also means I'm able to once again provide ratings for different classes of cars however this time, total cost of ownership (or at least the 10-year cost) is going to be the major deciding factor.

All cars must have a 5 star ANCAP safety rating to get on the list and they will usually involve a trim level above the basic (typically whichever one offers alloys standard - I'm a fan of shiny wheels!).

Best Cars of April 2011

Not much change from the leaderboard last month.

#1 Subaru Impreza R

Base Model Estimated Price: $24,490

Pros:

• Sedan
• 5 Star ANCAP Safety Rating
• Made in Japan
• Subaru resale value

Cons:

• None

#2 Mitsubishi Lancer SX

Base Model Estimated Price: $20,990

Pros:

• Sedan
• 5 Star ANCAP Safety Rating
• Made in Japan
• 5 year, 130,000km warranty

Cons:

• None

#3 Hyundai i30 Trophy CW

Base Model Estimated Price: $23,990

Pros:

• 5 Star ANCAP Safety Rating
• 5 year unlimited km warranty

Cons:

• Korean cars have a perception of poor quality (and hence lower resale values)

Best Cars of March 2011

This month's line-up is similar to September's line-up last year.

#1 Subaru Impreza R

Base Model Estimated Price: $24,490

Pros:

• Sedan
• 5 Star ANCAP Safety Rating
• Made in Japan
• Subaru resale value

Cons:

• None

#2 Mitsubishi Lancer SX

Base Model Estimated Price: $20,990

Pros:

• Sedan
• 5 Star ANCAP Safety Rating
• Made in Japan
• 5 year, 130,000km warranty

Cons:

• None

#3 Hyundai i30 Trophy CW

Base Model Estimated Price: $23,990

Pros:

• 5 Star ANCAP Safety Rating
• 5 year unlimited km warranty

Cons:

• Korean cars have a perception of poor quality

Best Cars of February 2011

Not much change this month. The Hyundai i30 Trophy is back and the Proton S16 now enters the fray, although its poor safety prevented it from posing any serious competition (not to mention a few other factors).

#1 Subaru Impreza R

Base Model Estimated Price: $24,490

Pros:

• Sedan
• 5 Star ANCAP Safety Rating
• Made in Japan
• Subaru resale value

Cons:

• None

#2 Mitsubishi Lancer SX

Base Model Estimated Price: $20,990

Pros:

• Sedan
• 5 Star ANCAP Safety Rating
• Made in Japan
• 5 year, 130,000km warranty

Cons:

• None

#3 Honda Civic Limited Edition

Base Model Estimated Price: $24,990

Pros:

• Sedan
• 5 year, 140,000 km warranty (for a limited time)

Cons:

• Thai import

Best Cars of January 2011

Happy New Year All! Let us see what are the choicest cars in 2011. I in fact may be getting a car this year so it makes this blog even more relevant to my circumstances. One of the changes I will be making is that the prices quoted will be WA prices from now on.

In terms of January, not much has changed in terms of the leaderboard besides the prices.

#1 Subaru Impreza R

Base Model Estimated Price: $24,990

Pros:

• Sedan
• 5 Star ANCAP Safety Rating
• Made in Japan
• Subaru resale value

Cons:

• None

#2 Mitsubishi Lancer SX

Base Model Estimated Price: $20,990

Pros:

• Sedan
• 5 Star ANCAP Safety Rating
• Made in Japan
• 5 year, 130,000km warranty

Cons:

• None

#3 Honda Civic Limited Edition

Base Model Estimated Price: $24,490

Pros:

• Sedan
• 5 year, 140,000 km warranty (for a limited time)

Cons:

• Thai import