Since many consumers are buying used cars to save money in a time of inflated prices for vehicles and many other products, finding ones that tend to last is an important consideration.

And doing so at the lowest cost doesn’t hurt, either. Research by iSeeCars.com arrived at the models offering the greatest value on four wheels in the U.S.

To identify the most reliable cars, the automotive search engine and research provider combed through prices of more than 700,000 used cars, plus the odometer readings of over 368 million used cars from a study it conducted on the longest-lasting cars.

The model distinguishing itself as the most reliable of all for the money in both the 5-year-old and 10-year-old used car categories is the compact Honda Fit. Bought at 5 years old, the five-door hatchback packs an 11.6-year remaining lifespan at an average list price of $18,336, iSeeCars says. 

Ironically, the Fit was pulled from the North American market after its fourth-generation 2020 edition, as SUV and pickups have come to dominate here.

In its research, iSeeCars found that the average 5-year-old car comes with a price tag of $26,206, what some new cars used to cost not so long ago, and has an average remaining lifespan of just 7.6 years.

“The most reliable used cars for the money tend to be small, low-cost economy cars,” said iSeeCars Executive Analyst Karl Brauer. “But the Infiniti Q50 luxury sedan makes the list by having a relatively low used car price and over 10 years of remaining life.”

The 5-year-old Fit is followed in reliability by the Volkswagen Passat with a 9.6-year remaining lifespan for an average list price of $17,636, and the Buick Encore with an 8.8-year remaining lifespan for an average price of $16,633.

The rest of the list is filled with Japanese and South Korean models.

Brauer pointed out that though used-car prices have fallen from their Covid-era peak, they’re still much higher than prepandemic levels.

“And with tariff looming it’s possible new and used prices could rise again,” Brauer said, pointing out the Trump administration trade tariffs.

The company also broke down used vehicles by type for truck, SUV, passenger car and hybrid reliability rankings. 

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