Insuring America's Most Popular Passenger Cars

Toyota Camry and Honda Accord Garner Lower Insurance Rates

May 11, 2009

Savvy consumers not only shop for the best prices for family vehicles, they also carefully compare insurance quotes that correspond with passenger cars they want to buy.

Japanese automakers Honda, Toyota and Nissan account for the six most popular passenger cars in the U.S. This is according to an online traffic study that tracked shoppers visiting the MSN Autos website during the third quarter of 2008. In eighth place, the entry-level Ford Focus was the only American-made vehicle to make the MSN Autos top 10 list. The Ford Focus and the 6 cars made by foreign automakers are also among the 20 most-requested vehicles for auto insurance quotes, as tracked by Insurance.com from 2008 up to the end of April 2009.

Neither finding is too surprising when one considers that all these vehicles are much in demand because they are fuel efficient, each capable of obtaining at least 30 miles per gallon on the highway.

Higher Insurance for Lower-Priced Passenger Cars

What was surprising was the finding that the annual auto insurance premium for a Ford Focus was US$403 higher or 16.8% greater than the average insurance quote for a Toyota Camry. A 2008 Camry LE retails for about $21,898; a 2008 Ford Focus goes for about $15,755.

Also unexpected was the fact that a 2008 Honda Accord retailing for about $23,960 was quoted an average annual insurance rate of $2,518. That premium is 8.8% less than the $2,740 insurance costs for 2008 Honda Civic LX selling for around $17,560.

Intuitively, one would anticipate higher car insurance rates for vehicles with higher sticker prices. As the following data shows, a more expensive passenger car doesn’t necessarily carry higher auto insurance premiums- even when one is comparing insurance rates for vehicles from the same car maker.

Insurance Quotes for the Most Popular Passenger Cars

Sorted in order and starting with the most popular, listed below are 7 of the most-requested passenger cars from the MSN Autos study. Also presented are the corresponding suggested retail prices for each type of car. As well, the average annual insurance premiums shown below were calculated based on the lowest average quotes and highest average quotes offered for each type of vehicle.

Bundling Passenger Car Insurance Premium Quotes

Many actuarial factors determine car insurance rates, including such statistics as how often a specific model is involved in automobile accidents and how often that type of automobile is stolen. Different car insurance companies place different emphasis when collecting their data and use different mathematical models to calculate the components that drive company-specific insurance rates.

In all cases, consumers would do well to shop around for the lowest possible car insurance rates. This is especially true today, as a poor economy forces many drivers to focus on saving money on both their vehicle and driver expenses.

After comparing the minimum and maximum average premiums for each type of passenger car in the above list, it was clear that every one of those vehicles showed a range of insurance quote savings that ranged from at least 44% up to 50%.

For families considering the purchase of a new passenger car, the best strategy may well be to bundle the search for the lowest-priced and most fuel-efficient vehicle with a rigorous comparison of auto insurance quotes for that type of automobile.

This article presents insights and independent calculations based on copyrighted data provided by Insurance.com, a leading provider of online insurance quotes dedicated to educating consumers.

The copyright of the article Insuring America's Most Popular Passenger Cars in Automotive Insurance is owned by Daniel Workman. Permission to republish Insuring America's Most Popular Passenger Cars in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.