The Best And Worst Certified Used Cars

By JACQUELINE MITCHELL

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Think about a used car and you might think junky, dirty and old. But another market is catching the attention of savvy buyers who want updated rides without paying new-car prices.

These certified used or certified "pre-owned" (CPO) vehicles have been inspected and refurbished by the manufacturer and are backed by extended warranties. The certified used car market isn't one that automakers can afford to ignore. According to a recent J.D. Power and Associates study, sales of certified used cars have increased 46% since 2000. Auto experts estimate that 1.6 million certified used cars are sold annually, a number equivalent to 10% of new vehicle sales.

In Pictures: The Best And Worst Certified Used Cars

This rapid growth started when the segment emerged in the 1990s. Luxury automakers like Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Lexus, looking for ways to unload vehicles coming off lease programs, introduced the certified pre-owned programs as a way to attract the discerning buyer who wanted a luxury car but didn't want to shell out the big bucks. Other luxury and non-luxury automakers who found themselves in similar situations began offering their versions of these programs.

Smart car buyers like them, too. Now, with this best-and-worst list of certified used cars from Forbes.com, smart buyers can be even smarter about this growing market segment.

Kelley Blue Book experts say new vehicle prices average $35,000 and depreciate at a rate of about 20% a year. With this in mind, the cost involved with the inspection, refurbishment and warranty of a certified pre-owned vehicle may add up to a better purchase package than buying a brand new car.

"CPO cars are selected from the best of the best," says Micah Muzio, video road-test editor of Kelley Blue Book. "Auto makers can sell them for a premium, usually about $3,000 more than a used (non-certified) car. But the customer gets peace of mind, because the vehicle has been inspected and it's backed by an extended warranty."

Honda Accord	Find it Used
Toyota 4Runner	Find it Used
Acura TL	Find it Used
Subaru Impreza	Find it Used
Lexus GS	Find it Used

List Based on Forbes.com data

But don't rush out and purchase or lease just any vehicle wearing a CPO badge. The programs vary by automaker--and the quality of the vehicles is just as diverse. We looked at a combination of measures to find the best and worst certified used cars on the market, including Consumer Reports' used-car verdict scores, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety for crash test ratings and manufacturer-backed warranty programs.

Saturn Relay	Find it Used
Jeep Grand Cherokee	Find it Used
Pontiac G6	Find it Used
Volkswagen New Beetle	Find it Used
Mercedes-Benz E Class	Find it Used

List Based on Forbes.com data

Vehicles that weren't at the top of class as new car purchases won't emerge at the top as stellar CPOs, Muzio says. The Relay, New Beetle and E Class, for example, are aging, older models; the Pontiac G6, while fairly new, isn't a big seller in the segment for family cars. And the Jeep Grand Cherokee has struggled in the highly competitive SUV market.

To get a comprehensive list, we did not use multiple vehicles from one brand, but took the best of the bunch. So if one company had two vehicles that could make the list, we chose the top-ranked car from that brand, based on our measures, to include on the list. We did not include vehicles that had been significantly redesigned for 2008, and we excluded vehicles that did not have complete reporting data for safety or Consumer Reports' used-car verdicts.

Those used-car verdicts are based on reliability history in 17 areas, ranging from the engine, transmission, and brakes to power equipment and the electrical system. Consumer Reports provides the data, where available, dating back to 1998. We used data for a three-year period spanning 2005 through 2007, as data for a five-year period was not always complete. The highest possible score a vehicle could earn over that time period is 15, or five points for each of the three years. We considered only vehicles with a total of 13 points or greater for the "best" list; a cutoff of seven points or less was used to determine the "worst."

The only vehicle making our list with a score of 15 is the Honda Accord. The vehicles with the lowest score are the Saturn Relay and Jeep Grand Cherokee, both tying with a score of three.

Keep in mind a score of 15 doesn't mean that the vehicle is problem-free; it just means that it has relatively fewer problems compared with other models. And a score of three doesn't mean a vehicle is unreliable; it merely has a higher rate of problems than the average model.

Safety was another key factor. Using information from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, we were able to find historical crash test ratings. All the vehicles that made the "best" list have safety ratings of "good" for both frontal-offset and side-impact crash tests for the three model years considered.

The vehicles on the "worst" list all earned "good" ratings in frontal-offset testing, but earned scores of less than "good" for side impacts. The lowest score was "poor"--for the Volkswagen New Beetle. The Saturn Relay, depending on the year, had scores of "average," "marginal" or "poor."

We looked at the extended standard warranty and the number of points inspected, which range from 75 to 165. For the best, we used a cutoff of 150 points or higher; for the worst, 130 points and below.

The length of time of an extended standard warranty and additional benefits were taken into consideration, but were not as heavily weighted as the number of inspection points, crash-test ratings and reliability history. All extended standard warranties kick in when the original manufacturer warranties expire; if the original has already expired, the new warranty goes into effect at the time the CPO vehicle is purchased. This information is available at the manufacturers' Web sites and the Kelley Blue Book site.

The CPO Acura TL includes 24-hour roadside assistance, 24-hour emergency towing services, emergency fuel delivery and emergency lock-out service as part of its 12-month/12,000-mile extended warranty.

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Tomshphrd43 11:22:31 AM May 11 2008

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WANDA YOU ARE SO RIGHT ABOUT VOLVO DRIVERS

Tomshphrd43 11:21:36 AM May 11 2008

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Wandr1Soul 05:24:35 AM May 11 2008

Report This! I don't have anything bad to say about VOLVO, but it seems that VOLVO drivers always pull out in front of you, in a hurry, and then they drive 10-15 miles under the speed limit! It's like a whole different breed of drivers... and they drive the rest of us nut!!!!

Wanda:-)))

wanda you are so right. i hate volvo drivers as a group they are the most selfish and arrogant.a-holz

Alfred schrader 07:47:36 AM May 11 2008

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Best I ever got was 200 MPG from a Mustang- I used dry - sump technology to do it.
My dad was a German Rocket maker from Bavaria.
I'm a second generation rocket maker.
I can build anything.
If you would like to improve your MPG you can email me if you would like.
alfredschrader@
aol.com

Kozlo454 06:40:50 AM May 11 2008

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Does anyone out there have any feedback on KIAs and Hyundai's with regard to dependability, gas mileage, and warranty?

DmtrSh 06:31:01 AM May 11 2008

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What happened to the old school cars pre 1976 Since the gas crisis from the mid 70's back in the days when TV went off the air at midnight, the RTD buses (now MTA in CALI) fare was 20cents Dolemite was "The Human Tarnado" and before there was cable TV. The American auto industry just went to Hell. Prior to the 77" gas crisis we had the Javolin RX, the Road Runner, GTX, Chevelle, HEMICUDA, GTO, and the ORIGINAL Charger RT/ HEMI. After the gas crisis, we got the PINTO, VEGA, GRIMLIN and the football shaped PACER. Hell,.. no wonder the U.S. auto industry are in trouble. WELL at least FORD is. now the musscle cars of the sixties and early seventies were my cars in my HS years GO back to your roots

POPESTUR 05:50:07 AM May 11 2008

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buy Acura.

demzrdopes 05:42:46 AM May 11 2008

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FORD builds the best trucks, period. Chevy trucks ride like SUV's which is great if that's what you're looking for. Whenever I see someone driving a Dodge, my first thought is Moron. Toyota's and Nissans are for back stabbing, traiterous weasels....

Thebreeze2902 05:38:32 AM May 11 2008

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There ar alot of good american cars out there.The problem is the company's don't stand behind the product.Why you ask.....The american worker is a lazy piece of s%$#@ thats why!
Nobody in this country wants to work,they just want to *****! The Japanese,the Germans,they aren't smarter,they just work harder.Thats why their product is better made.Not better,..better made.
It we Americans don't shape up soon,we will end up another 3rd world country.We are so far behind the world,we all may be looking at India for jobs!

CJDAHulbert 05:26:01 AM May 11 2008

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You better leave your preconceived notions and generalisations at home and do your research before you shop for your vehicle. European cars as a group are the most unrealiable of the three major car producing continents and Mercedes quality has become a joke on those willing to put out exhorbitant sums of money in the last decade. American vehicles are all over the spectrum ranging from the very bad to the sometimes quite good. Even Japanese quality has been slipping - especially once venerable Toyota - but they seem to have a bigger commitment to bringing truly useful technology (for example, hybrids) to market than the Americans or Europeans.

Wandr1Soul 05:24:35 AM May 11 2008

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I don't have anything bad to say about VOLVO, but it seems that VOLVO drivers always pull out in front of you, in a hurry, and then they drive 10-15 miles under the speed limit! It's like a whole different breed of drivers... and they drive the rest of us nut!!!!

Wanda:-)))

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