Best used cars to buy in 2020 revealed by iSeeCars.com

Most people will buy used vehicles in 2020.

That should not be a surprise considering that the average cost of a new vehicle now exceeds $37,000, which is about $15,000 more than a pre-owned model.

And that means a lot of research on the best used cars to buy in 2020 is happening right now.

Toyota 4Runner
Photo credit: Toyota via Newspress USA
The Toyota 4Runner was named best used SUV and best five-year-old vehicle under $30,000.

“There’s a lot to consider when buying a used car,” said iSeeCars.com in a report on its 2020 best buys. “Researching used cars to understand important factors such as reliability and value retention can help consumers find the right car at the right price.”

The car-research website identified the best-used-car winners in nine categories, the best used cars under $15,000, $20,000 and $30,000, and the best three-year-old cars from $20,000 to $30,000.

“The winners are cars that have demonstrated long-term reliability, hold their value the best, and have an average safety rating of at least four out of five from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,” according to iSeeCars, which evaluated five-year-old and three-year-old vehicles.

Best used vehicles

The safest, most-reliable cars (and runners-up) with best value retention by category are:

SUV – Toyota 4Runner (winner) and Toyota Highlander (runner-up)

Passenger car – Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla

Pickup truck – Toyota Tacoma and Honda Ridgeline

Minivan – Toyota Sienna and Honda Odyssey

Sports car – Ford Mustang and Dodge Charger

Hybrid car – Toyota Prius and Toyota Camry Hybrid

Electric vehicle (EV) – Tesla Model S and Chevrolet Volt

Luxury car – Lexus ES 350 and Mercedes-Benz E-Class

Luxury SUV – Acura MDX and Volvo XC90

Best three-year-old vehicles $20,000-$30,000

Chevrolet Silverado 1500, pickup truck, $29,535 average price

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, $23,464

Honda CR-V, SUV, $20,093

Best five-year-old vehicles under $15,000

Honda Accord, passenger car, $14,242 average price

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 five-year-old vehicles under $20,000

Honda Pilot, SUV, $19,677 average price

Honda Odyssey, minivan, $18,960

Toyota Sienna, minivan, $18,523

Ford Mustang, sports car, $17,266

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 five-year-old vehicles under $30,000

Toyota 4Runner, SUV, $27,064 average price

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 ES 350, luxury car, $20,024

The study analyzed more than 20 million cars from previous 2019 iSeeCars.com studies and combined the results with crash test ratings from NHTSA.

For more details on the best used vehicles overall and runners-up by category visit iSeeCars.com.

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