A cheap car can be a bad bargain and an expensive one a good value. IntelliChoice, a California data firm, focuses an accountant's eye on total ownership costs over 5 years to help predict financial winners and losers. It gives yearly awards to the best values. Hondas win eight of 29 categories.
Fords snare five.
Toyota and Mercedes-Benz tie at three each. When IntelliChoice consolidates the list to six broad categories, Ford falls off, and GMC and Nissan enter. The top values divided into 29 classes IntelliChoice picks winners by comparing expected 5-year ownership costs for all vehicles in a price class. The biggest factor usually is depreciation. Fuel, even at today's prices, is a second-tier cost.