Safe vehicles for teens

For many families, a brand new Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ isn't in the budget for a teen's vehicle. In a national phone survey conducted for IIHS of parents of teen drivers, 83 percent of those who bought a vehicle for their teenagers said they bought it used.

With that reality in mind, in 2014, we began publishing a list of affordable used vehicles that meet important safety criteria for teen drivers.

Consumer Reports (CR) has published similar lists of recommended vehicles for teens, using different criteria such as vehicle reliability and performance in braking and emergency handling tests.

Now our organizations have joined forces to recommend safe, reliable and affordable used vehicles. Our goal is to make it even easier for young drivers or their parents to find a vehicle that checks all the boxes for safety, performance and reliability.

There are two tiers of recommended vehicles, best choices and good choices. Prices range from a little over $5,000 to nearly $20,000, so parents can buy the most safety for their money, whatever their budget.

Remember to check for recalls!
Use the Vehicle Identification Number to check for outstanding recalls before buying a used vehicle. To receive future recall notices, notify the manufacturer of your purchase. NHTSA also advises vehicle owners to check its database for new recalls every six months or so.

Best choices

Updated July 30, 2020

All listed vehicles earn good ratings in the IIHS moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint tests, as well as a good or acceptable rating in the driver-side small overlap front test. If rated by NHTSA, they earn 4 or 5 stars overall or 4 or 5 stars in the front and side tests under the old rating scheme. All come with standard electronic stability control and have a curb weight greater than 2,750 pounds.

These vehicles have above-average reliability scores from CR for the majority of model years listed and CR emergency handling scores of 3 out of 5 or higher. They also have dry braking distances (going from 60 mph to zero) of 145 feet or less.

Vehicles with substantially higher than average claim frequency under medical payment or personal injury protection coverage are excluded from this list.

Good choices

Updated July 30, 2020

All listed vehicles earn good ratings in the IIHS moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint tests. If rated by NHTSA, they earn 4 or 5 stars overall or 4 or 5 stars in the front and side tests under the old rating scheme. All come with standard electronic stability control and have a curb weight greater than 2,750 pounds.

These vehicles have above-average reliability scores from CR for the majority of model years listed and CR emergency handling scores of 3 out of 5 or higher. They also have dry braking distances (going from 60 mph to zero) of 145 feet or less.

• ^FootnotePrices, provided by Kelley Blue Book rounded to the nearest $100, are average U.S. values from July 1, 2020, for the lowest trim level and earliest applicable model year. The estimates are based on the following criteria: vehicle in good condition, typical mileage and private party purchase.
• ^FootnoteSome listed models include a "built after" date. This applies when a manufacturer makes changes to improve safety in the middle of a model year. Information about when a specific vehicle was manufactured can be found on the certification label typically affixed to the driver door or near it.