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The Most And Least Expensive Cars To Insure

When it comes to cheaper auto insurance, family-friendly four doors are usually your best bet. The humble though still popular Chrysler Town & Country is a sensible car that’s fairly cheap to insure. On the other hand, if imported luxury is your preferred mode of transportation, be prepared for hefty insurance premiums to go with all the trappings.

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Knee-buckling beauties like the 12-cylinder Mercedes SL65 AMG can set you back a national average of $3,543.81 per year in insurance costs alone, making it the most expensive car in America to insure, according to data from Quadrant Information Services commissioned by Insure.com. Overall, European brands including Mercedes, Porsche, Aston Martin and BMW are the most expensive to safeguard. Meanwhile, American and Japanese non-luxury minivans, SUVs and sedans make up the 10 least expensive cars to insure, according to Quadrant’s data.  The top four cheapest cars to insure are minivans.

For comparison’s sake, Quadrant calculates average annual insurance premiums based on a single 40-year-old male driver with a clean driving record, good credit, and who commutes 12 miles to work each day. The premiums Quadrant comes up with include uninsured motorist coverage with policy limits of $100,000 for injury liability for one person, $300,000 for all injuries and $50,000 for property damage in an accident, plus a $500 deductible on collision and comprehensive coverage.  Premium quotes come from six large insurance carriers: State Farm, Allstate, Progressive, GEICO, Farmers and Nationwide.

Of course, your own rates may vary based on your personal situation.

And insurance rates can be much higher in certain states. While one might expect that New York and California would top the list of states with the highest average auto insurance premiums, they don’t even make it to the top five.

There are a couple of key reasons why Michigan holds the top spot in terms of costly car insurance according to Insure.com spokesman Emmet Pierce.  “Michigan is the only state that guarantees unlimited personal injury protection payments to those who are injured in auto accidents,” plus the state includes assistance to help people with catastrophic injuries to pay for medical care, Pierce explains.

But brand and price aren’t necessarily the only factors that come into play when determining insurance premiums.  Age and driving experience of owners are also a factor.

“An inexpensive car can be relatively costly to insure if it appeals to younger, less-experienced drivers who tend to get into more accidents,” says Pierce. For instance, a Kia Rio is definitely not considered a luxury car, but at $1,522, the annual insurance premiums aren’t much less than that of a Corvette two-door coupe which costs around $1,741 per year on average to insure.

Cars on the list of most commonly-stolen vehicles in the country according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau can also be more expensive to insure than those that aren’t on the list. Those particular cars actually tend to be older models that aren’t equipped with the sophisticated anti-theft and tracking devices that newer vehicles have.

Top 10 least expensive to insure (national average annual premium):

Nissan Murano
Nissan Murano

10) Toyota Highlander SUV ($1,154.02)
9)  Ford Escape XLS SUV ($1,150.26)
8)  Toyota Sienna V6 Minivan ($1,142.94)
7)  Honda Odyssey EX Minivan  ($1,138.16)
6)  Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sport ($1,131.27)
5)  Nissan Murano SL SUV ($1,127.89)
4)  Honda Odyssey LX Minivan ($1,114.62)
3)  Toyota Sienna LE Minivan ($1,107.70)
2)  Toyota Sienna I4 Minivan ($1,100.66)
1)  Chrysler Town & Country LX Minivan ($1,091.80)

Top 10 most expensive to insure (national average annual premium):

Aston Martin DB9
Aston Martin DB9

10) Mercedes G55 AMG SUV ($3,086.49)
9) Aston Martin DB9 Volante Convertible ($3,088.96)
8) Porsche 911 Carrera S Cabriolet ($3,092.31)
7) Mercedes CL600 Coupe ($3,114.28)
6) Aston Martin DB9 Coupe ($3,120.45)
5) Mercedes S65 AMG Sedan ($3,220.86)
4) Mercedes SL63 AMG Convertible ($3,263.46)
3) BMW 750Li Sedan ($3,280.70)
2) BMW 750i Sedan ($3,280.70)
1) Mercedes SL65 AMG Convertible ($3,543.81)

Full List: The Most And Least Expensive Cars To Insure