Top Used Cars Under $20,000

March 6, 2014

If you're in the market for a used car, chances are you're looking for a vehicle that's less than $20,000. The good news is there's lots of great options. Consumer Reports recently did much of the legwork for you, releasing a list of what they consider the best used vehicles for under $20,000, based on reliability and testing track records.

Below is a look at the various options and years, which also includes information on whether or not electronic stability control (ESC) was optional or standard for certain years.

Subcompact & Compact Cars

Vehicle	Under $10,000	$10,000-$15,000	$15,000-$20,000	ESC Optional From	ESC Standard From
Ford Focus Sedan	05-06, '08-09	10-11	-	09	10
Honda Civic Sedan	04-07	08-11	12-13	09	12
Honda Fit	07-08	09-13	-	09	11
Hyundai Accent	09	13	-	-	12
Hyundai Elantra Sedan	07-09	-	12-13	08	11
Kia Forte	-	12-13	-	-	all
Kia Soul	-	10-11	13	-	all
Mazda3	08	09-12	-	07	11
Mazda3 (Skyactiv 2.0-liter)	-	12	13	-	all
Nissan Leaf	-	-	11-12	-	all
Pontiac Vibe	04-08	09-10	-	05	09
Scion tC	05-06	-	-	-	11
Scion xB	04-06	09-11	12	-	all
Scion xD	-	08-10	-	08	10
Subaru Impreza (sedan, non-turbo)	-	10	11/13/14	08	09
Subaru Impreza (wagon, non-turbo)	05	08, '10	11-13	08	09
Suzuki SX4	08	-	-	07	12
Toyota Corolla	04-08	10-12	13	05	10
Toyota Matrix	04-07	08, '10	-	05	10
Toyota Prius	04-07	08-10	11-12	04	10
Toyota Yaris Hatchback	07-10	-	-	-	10
Volkswagen Golf	-	-	11-12	04	10
Volkswagen Jetta Sedan (5-cyl.)	08	09-10	-	04	09
Volkswagen Rabbit	07	09	-	07	09

Midsized & Large Cars

Vehicle	Under $10,000	$10,000-$15,000	$15,000-$20,000	ESC Optional From	ESC Standard From
Acura RL	04	05-06	07-08	-	all
Acura TL	04	05-07	08	-	all
Acura TSX (4-cyl.)	04-05	06-08	10	-	all
Audi A6 (V6)	-	06	08	-	all
BMW 328i Sedan	-	-	09	-	all
Cadillac CTS (RWD)	-	-	09	04	08
Ford Fusion (4-cyl.)	08	09	12	09	10
Ford Fusion (V6, FWD)	06-08	09	12	09	10
Ford Fusion Hybrid	-	-	10-11	-	all
Honda Accord (4-cyl.)	04-05	06-09	10-12	-	08
Honda Accord Sedan (V6)	04	05-07	-	-	06
Hyundai Azera	06	07	-	-	all
Hyundai Sonata (4-cyl.)	07-08	09	-	-	06
Hyundai Sonata (V6)	04, '07	09	-	-	06
Infiniti G Sedan	04	06-07	08	-	all
Infiniti M (V6)	-	-	06-08	-	all
Lexus ES	-	04-06	07-08	04	07
Lexus GS	-	04	06-07	-	all
Lexus IS Sedan	-	04-05	06, '08	04	06
Lexus LS	-	-	04-05	-	all
Lincoln MKZ (V6)	-	08	09-10	-	09
Mazda6	08	09	11-12	05	09
Mercedes-Benz C-Class (V6)	04	07	08	-	all
Mercedes-Benz E-Class (V6, RWD)	-	05	07-08	-	all
Mercury Milan (4-cyl.)	08-09	-	-	09	10
Mercury Milan (V6, FWD)	06-08	09	-	09	10
Mercury Milan Hybrid	-	-	10-11	-	all
Nissan Altima Hybrid	-	08-09	-	-	all
Nissan Altima Sedan (4-cyl.)	06	09, '11-12	-	-	10
Nissan Altima Sedan (V6)	-	07	11	07	10
Nissan Maxima	-	08	-	04	09
Subaru Legacy (4-cyl.)	-	09-10	11-13	07	09
Toyota Avalon (V6)	04	05-08	09-10	04	09
Toyota Camry (4-cyl.)	04-06	07, '10	11-13	05	10
Toyota Camry (V6)	04-05	06-10	11	04	10
Toyota Camry Hybrid	-	07-09	10-11	-	all
Volvo S60	04-05	07-08	-	04	07

Sports & Sport Cars/Convertibles

Vehicle	Under $10,000	$10,000-$15,000	$15,000-$20,000	ESC Optional From	ESC Standard From
BMW Z4	-	05	06-07	-	all
Ford Mustang (V8)	-	05-06	07-08	-	10
Honda Civic Si	-	06-08	-	-	07
Honda S2000	-	04	05-07	-	06
Lexus SC	-	-	04	-	all
Mazda MX-5 Miata	04	06-08	09-10	06	12
Nissan 350Z	-	04	06	04	10

Wagons & Minivans

Vehicle	Under $10,000	$10,000-$15,000	$15,000-$20,000	ESC Optional From	ESC Standard From
Honda Crosstour	-	-	10-11	-	all
Honda Odyssey	04	06	-	-	05
Mazda5	-	-	12-13	-	10
Subaru Outback (4-cyl.)	-	-	09-10	07	09
Toyota Prius V	-	-	-	-	all
Toyota Sienna (FWD)	04	05-06, '08	09	04	08
Toyota Venza (V6)	-	-	-	-	all
Volvo XC70 (Cross Country)	04	-	08	04	07

Small SUVs

Vehicle	Under $10,000	$10,000-$15,000	$15,000-$20,000	ESC Optional From	ESC Standard From
Acura RDX	-	-	07-08	-	all
Ford Escape Hybrid	05	09	10	-	09
Honda CR-V	04	05-08	09-11	-	05
Hyundai Tucson	06-07	-	-	-	all
Kia Sportage	-	07	-	-	05
Mazda CX-5	-	-	-	-	all
Mercury Mariner Hybrid	-	09	10	-	09
Mitsubishi Outlander	07	08, '10	11-12	-	07
Mitsubishi Outlander Sport	-	11	12	-	all
Nissan Juke	-	-	12	-	all
Nissan Rogue	-	10	11-13	-	all
Subaru Forester (non-turbo)	-	08	09-10	07	09
Toyota RAV4 (4-cyl.)	04-05	06, '08	09-12	-	all
Toyota RAV4 (V6)	-	06, '08	09-11	-	all

Midsized & Large SUVs

Vehicle	Under $10,000	$10,000-$15,000	$15,000-$20,000	ESC Optional From	ESC Standard From
Acura MDX	-	04-06	-	-	all
Ford Edge	-	07	09	-	all
Honda Pilot	04-05	06-07	08	05	06
Infiniti FX (V6)	-	04-05	06	-	all
Lexus GX	-	-	04-05	-	all
Lexus RX	-	04-05	06-07	-	all
Lexus RX Hybrid	-	-	06-07	-	all
Lincoln MKX	-	-	07-08	-	all
Mazda CX-9	-	-	10	-	all
Nissan Murano	-	-	-	04	09
Toyota 4Runner (V6)	-	04-06	07-08	-	all
Toyota Highlander (V6)	04	05-08	09	-	all
Toyota Highlander Hybrid	-	06	07	-	all
Toyota Sequoia	-	06	07	-	all

Pickup Trucks

Vehicle	Under $10,000	$10,000-$15,000	$15,000-$20,000	ESC Optional From	ESC Standard From
Honda Ridgeline	-	06	07-09	-	all
Nissan Frontier	-	-	08	04	12
Toyota Tacoma (V6, 4WD)	-	04-05	06-07	04	09
Toyota Tundra (V8, 4WD)	-	04-05	06	04	09

My Recommendation for Car Shoppers

TrueCar No-Haggle, CarsDirect, and Ryde Shopper are the quickest way to see the lowest car prices in your area. These sites show you no-haggle prices from dealers closest to you - and the deals are usually really good. This should be the first step you take when negotiating your car price. Follow this up with my checklist to make sure you squeeze out every last bit of savings.
- Gregg Fidan

Each week, I'll keep you up-to-date on the latest car deals and news that might affect your purchase. This includes...

Best Rebates, Incentives, and Lease Deals
Latest Car Buying Scams and Tricks
The Best & Worst Time to Buy a Car
Which Cars You Should Avoid

About The Author

Gregg Fidan is the founder of RealCarTips. After being ripped off on his first car purchase, he devoted several years to figuring out the best ways to avoid scams and negotiate the best car deals. He has written hundreds of articles on the subject of car buying and taught thousands of car shoppers how to get the best deals.

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