The Best Used Cars Under $20,000

When searching for used vehicles, it's difficult to put your finger on what's important. While you might have your heart set on a particular year and model, sometimes it's hard to decide if a higher resale value is a better buy or if low resale prices means you can get more vehicle for less. At under $20,000, there are a lot of options -- including many luxury nameplates that you'd never imagine you'd get a chance to drive. Here are some of our favorites.

The "King Ranch" edition might just be our favorite of the Ford F-150 lineup. Supple, brown leather and beautiful interior accents really make the vehicle feel more like the inside of an old hunting club than a plain Jane truck.

With room for passengers in the back of the SuperCrew, the King Ranch is almost a luxury SUV as much as it is a great work truck.

GM's lineup of full size SUVs could very well be the best in the business; after all, they designed and built these with the SUV craze still in mind.

We like the Tahoe because it has most of the content of the more expensive SUVs but with a lower price. This is the same body style as the current model, too.

Arguably one of the best sports car deals available, the 2006 Pontiac GTO was the last of a breed. We mean that literally: it was the last year of GTO production.

The 2005 and 2006 models had the upgraded "LS2" V-8 engine, meaning more power and performance. How does 400 hp sound?

The first year of the most current body style, Lexus's 2005 GS offers a large, luxurious interior while still retaining a very sporting driving demeanor.

We recommend the V-6 for its fuel efficiency and lower cost; these cars came standard with six-speed automatic transmissions, too -- itself a fuel-saving feature.

During the fuel surge of last year, used Prius vehicles were said to have spiked in value. While that may no longer be the case, it doesn't mean owners are giving up their vehicles for SUVs.

The world's most popular hybrid is the safest used hybrid purchase you can buy.

A popular choice for luxury SUV buyers (as well as a popular exterior that other manufacturers tend to steal when they design their crossovers), the Lexus RX has become an icon of suburbia, populating finer Curves parking lots everywhere.

A dead-simple but luxurious interior and a classic crossover driving experience make this an easy choice.

Audi's A4 "Avant" (a fancy word for wagon) is a sporty alternative to the family wagon. While it might not have the interior space of the wagons of yore, it makes up for it with an incredibly handsome interior and responsive handling.

We like the 2.0T engine for its racy driving characteristics and fuel efficiency.

Top down, stereo on, gas pedal pinned to the floor. While there are other convertibles for sale on the market, none capture the raw, visceral emotions of Ford's Mustang for top-down driving.

The V-8 engine in the GT might be a little much for these lean times, but were convertibles meant to be entirely practical?