The cheapest new cars of 2024 that are worth spending money on

Average car prices continue to rise. Even to buy a budget model, you'll have to pay a significant amount of money, and the quality of such cars is rather questionable.

Compact cars, such as the Honda Civic and Mazda 3, offer good value for money. Motor Trend experts have published a rating of inexpensive cars that can be purchased in 2024.

Mazda 3

The overall driving experience of the Mazda 3 is not bad: The 2.5-liter four-cylinder atmospheric engine with 191 hp provides enough power for a high-quality and comfortable ride. Although the rear seats are rather cramped, the overall performance and available all-wheel drive make the Mazda 3 a serious contender in the segment.

Honda Civic

More mature than previous generation models, the 2024 Honda Civic offers significant value, especially in terms of safety, although many of the Civic's best features are reserved for higher-priced models. Even so, the base Civic delivers excellent performance with a 2.0-liter, 158-hp, atmospheric four-cylinder engine.

Subaru Impreza

Individuality and stylish looks are the hallmarks of the 2024 Subaru Impreza. Subaru has truly excellent handling and all-wheel drive. Despite the well-tuned chassis and suspension, the Impreza (or even its rebooted RS trim) can only be described as "sporty" conditionally. The Impreza's 2.0-liter atmospheric four-cylinder base engine with 152 horsepower will provide a stable, high-quality ride.

Toyota Corolla

The 2024 Toyota Corolla in sedan or hatchback body style is a constant favorite in many ratings. The car combines impressive interior space and stylish design with high safety performance. The disadvantages include interior materials and driving dynamics that are inferior to the Civic, although the base Corolla is equipped with a 2.0-liter engine with 169 hp. The Corolla can compete with the turbocharged, manual all-wheel drive GR Corolla at the top of the lineup.

Volkswagen Jetta

Reliability and economy are the main characteristics of the 2024 Volkswagen Jetta. Volkswagen's compact sedan is inexpensive, but the ride and handling are far from ideal, the interior looks cheap, and any engagement gained from Jetta's available manual transmission is lost through its non-communicative steering. The basic 1.5-liter turbocharged engine with 158 hp allows it to move quite quickly and agilely.

Hyundai Elantra

The Hyundai Elantra offers space and economy. A great bonus is that it is the best model in the 2022 IIHS safety rating. The Elantra remains the best budget choice in the compact car segment. The base model is equipped with a 2.0-liter inline four-cylinder engine with 147 hp, which, combined with a variable transmission, certainly has many advantages over similarly priced competitors.

Nissan Sentra

Despite the fact that in some areas it loses out to the segment leaders, the Nissan Sentra has an attractive appearance, acceptable costs, and a large interior space. On the other hand, its poor power-to-weight ratio means that the Sentra's 2.0-liter, 149-hp four-cylinder engine is likely to struggle to deliver a quality ride, and all-wheel drive is not available as standard.

Kia Forte

The base Forte has a somewhat unrefined CVT and low safety ratings. The Forte compensates for this in important areas, namely through impressive fuel economy thanks to its 2.0-liter engine with 147 hp. The Forte GT has a powerful powertrain and a lot of features at a lower price than the competition.

Mitsubishi Mirage

The 2024 Mitsubishi Mirage subcompact is at the top of the podium for the cheapest cars. However, there are nuances. As you might expect from a car where technically even the owner's manual is an optional extra, the Mirage is the simplest definition of a basic car for 2024. Despite weighing almost half as much as the average car, its driving dynamics are far from ideal, to put it mildly, its safety is marginal, and its performance is poor. Even if you take into account how inexpensive the Mirage is, its downsides are hardly worth the risks.

Nissan Versa

The Nissan Versa offers good fuel economy, and its 1.6-liter four-cylinder, atmospherically supercharged engine, which develops 122 hp, is relatively sophisticated (the cheapest model gets a five-speed manual transmission or an available CVT). Among the disadvantages are low speed and a significant level of road noise in the cabin. However, high safety performance and the lowest base price on the market make the Nissan Versa a reliable option.

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