These Are the 3 Best Used Cars You Can Buy

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A driver holds the keys to her used car
tommaso79 / Shutterstock.com

If safety, reliability and resale value top your list of attributes in a used car, consider a Honda Accord.

It was named the best used midsize sedan and earned the highest overall score — 9.1 out of 10 — of all the “best” non-electric passenger cars in a recent analysis by iSeeCars.

If an SUV is more your thing, another vehicle from a Japanese manufacturer — the Toyota Highlander — might be a good choice. It was named the best used midsize SUV and the best used third-row SUV and earned the highest overall score out of all the non-electric SUVs in the study, 8.9 out of 10.

If you are interested in an electric vehicle and willing to spend at least around $40,000 for a used car, consider the Tesla Model S. It was named the best used electric vehicle and earned an overall score of 9.6 out of 10 — the highest of any vehicle in iSeeCars’ analysis.

In arriving at its conclusions, the automotive website and search engine analyzed data from more than 24 million cars, focusing on how they performed in three areas:

  • Longevity
  • Resale value
  • Safety ratings from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

The Accord beat out other non-electric passenger cars for several reasons. Even as the popularity of sedans has faded, iSeeCars notes, the Accord remains a strong seller due to its longevity. According to iSeeCars:

“It is the longest-lasting vehicle in its segment, with above-average value retention and perfect safety scores. It also has a comfortable and roomy interior and excellent fuel economy.”

According to iSeeCars, these are your best used cars in the other categories included in the analysis:

  • Compact SUV: Honda CR-V
  • Luxury compact SUV: Acura RDX
  • Luxury midsize SUV: Acura MDX
  • Full-size SUV: Chevrolet Tahoe
  • Luxury full-size SUV: Lincoln Navigator
  • Luxury third-row SUV: Acura MDX
  • Midsize truck: Toyota Tacoma
  • Full-size truck: Toyota Tundra
  • Compact car: Honda Civic
  • Luxury compact car: Lexus IS 250
  • Luxury midsize sedan: Lexus ES 350
  • Large sedan: Toyota Avalon
  • Luxury large sedan: Buick LaCrosse
  • Sports car: Ford Mustang
  • Hybrid car: Toyota Prius
  • Hybrid SUV: Toyota Highlander Hybrid
  • Minivan: Honda Odyssey
  • Car under $5,000: Mazda Mazda3
  • Car under $10,000: Toyota Yaris

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