Unemployment and inflation rates have brought the sales of trucks and sport utility vehicles and the fuel-efficient smaller cars, a range of costs, like the depreciation, maintenance, taxes and insurance started commanding the auto sales.

A bit of researching for a less expensive-to-drive car requires focusing on your options. Your budget, fuel efficiency of the car, depreciation/the resale value, safety and reliability would tip the scales in your favor. However, not all the vehicles fulfill your wish list. One feature or the other will have to be done without. Some cars are fuel-efficient, some aren't; some hold their value well, others do not do it well. Consider a period of time and at the end of which the vehicles should cost much less in relation to the other cars say over a term of five to six years.

Let us look at a few features that would bring the total cost of the vehicle to the owner at the end of say, 5 years:

•  Small cars: Small cars can be the least expensive car over a five-year period but tend to have higher rates of injury and collision and have more insurance claims for repair

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:

• Small cars are less safe than bigger vehicles
• People are more likely to be injured in them when they crash
• Small cars also tend to get into more crashes

Depreciation: Depreciation is critical and can be as high as 60% of the cost of ownership occurs in the first year of its purchase. It takes the lion’s share in annual ownership cost for vehicles up to six years old, according to Consumer Reports.

• The Toyota Yaris: The Toyota Yaris costs $11,550. It has an estimated combined 31 mpg as reported by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) The cost of owning the Toyota Yaris over five-year is modest $33,831, only three times the purchase price. The Toyota Yaris adds up to a fuel costing 30% of the long-term costs. The bad news is, the Toyota Yaris depreciates at a rate of 73%--the fastest of any car
• Toyota Prius hybrid: Toyota Prius hybrid’s fuel consumption is as low as 17.9% of the five-year costs. Toyota Prius hybrid also depreciates quickly at less than half the rate of the Yaris. In the markets of hybrids only the latest and newest technology rules the roost and it is hard to find takers for the Preowned Toyota Prius hybrid cars
• Cadillac DTS luxury sedan: Cadillac DTS luxury sedan cost around $43,175. The cost of fueling a Cadillac` DTS luxury sedan is the highest. That would boost the five-year cost of ownership of the Cadillac DTS luxury sedan to $69,663. The car's depreciation rate is among the lowest on the list, at 38%. Its insurance is only 10% of the total cost, far less than those of the Yaris and the Prius.
• Jeep Patriot: Jeep Patriot costs MSRP $4,000 lower than the Toyota Prius. The Jeep Patriot is more fuel-efficient SUVs on the road with a combined EPA of 24 mpg. This reduces its fuel costs. Jeep Patriot has one of the lowest maintenance and repair costs of any vehicle. The insurance costs are also among the lowest on the list. But the Jeep is not great on depreciation.

Because all such factors play a key role in reducing the cost of a vehicle, a car buyer should be wary about their individual needs. It makes no sense in buying a cheap-to-drive small car if your family is large. Do thorough researches to understand how these costs work for you in the long run, reducing the expense of the car.

Thanks to Attorney General, the drivers of Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep vehicles will retain their Lemon Law rights to compensation for defects under a deal between U.S. states and Chrysler LLC's new owners, Fiat Group SpA.

The Italian automaker takes over Chrysler as part of its reorganization. Chrysler filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in April.

• Is willing to honor warranties on vehicles sold before or after the bankruptcy
• Chrysler says it will be responsible only for problems with vehicles sold after the bankruptcy for personal injury lawsuits
• Shows a stance reduces current Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep vehicle owners’ right to sue the automaker for injury-causing to a mere debate
• Did not explicitly say that it would be responsible for future product-liability suits involving vehicles already sold
• Was trying to avoid potential liability to current owners

Thanks to Attorney General, who with other state attorneys general, negotiated the national agreement with Fiat Group SpA before the Italian automaker takes over Chrysler and:

• Drivers who own Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep vehicles will retain their Lemon Law rights to compensation for defects
• Chrysler is also asked to honor a Florida law that requires automakers to buy back vehicles and parts when they terminate dealer franchises.
• He also has filed a motion with the bankruptcy court opposing efforts to override such state laws: Chrysler has announced it plans to pull the franchises with 35 Florida dealers.

Florida's Lemon Law requires:

• Manufacturers to buy back or replace defective cars and trucks if they haven't been fixed after a reasonable number of tries.
• Applies to new and demonstration vehicles and those under long-term leases, protecting them for 24 months after delivery.

Thanks to Attorney General, the latest Florida Lemon Law report for 2007 showed that Chrysler:

• Is leading the automakers with 295 cases approved for arbitration as the 35 percent of the total
• Is accounted for 45 percent of all full settlements.
• Tied Ford for most liability awards by the state's arbitration panel as the 39, or 23 percent of a total of 171

However, Chrysler’s willingness to comply with the lemon laws sounds bizarre because bankruptcies are generally used as a ploy to get rid of existing, tangible debts, and try to prevent future obligations.

 People approach car-buying with an inherent sense of apprehension because they don't want to buy somebody else's problems.

• They will get taken
• Unwittingly buy a lemon
• End up with something they don't want
• Pay way more than the car is worth

• Once in a while, a new one comes off the assembly line complete with problems
• Will the dealership fix the car?
  
  

• Is there any warranty remaining?
• What does it cover, and what does it not cover?
• What happens if the thing just quits on you?
• What if the master cylinder goes out?
• The battery proves to be moribund after two days
• If all the tires go flat at once?
• Will the dealership help you?
• Will they come get the car?
• What about a loaner?

• Who owned the car before
• What kind of problems they had with the car
• Did they furnish documents to validate the repairs they say they made
• Tell them firmly that you want your mechanic to check the car out

• Go elsewhere
• Look for a dealership that will give you at least 30 days to determine if the car is a lemon

• Low miles on the odometer
• Warranty
• Wear and tear issues

• Green, Red (in some of the newer cars) or clear water is a good indicator

• Muddy brown suggests that an additive has been added to the coolant to seal a leak in the radiator/water pump, or the vehicle has a blown head gasket

• A valve cover leak which is usually a minor repair

• Other leaks

• Poorly maintained Vehicle

• Suggest a blown head gasket which is a costly repair.

• Failure  
• That has been run with no oil for long periods of time

• Bright pinkish red colored fluid indicates a healthy or decently maintained transmission

• Brownish red colored fluid suggests that it is possibly time for a fluid change

• Straight brown fluid indicates poor maintenance on the transmission which will require immediate attention
• Metal filings in the fluid indicates that the transmission is going out

• Bad thermostat
• Blocked or cracked radiator
• Fluid loss from a hose
• Some other component in the water system
• Blown head gasket which cost around $1100 to repair

• A static puffing discharge indicates potential engine problems
• The exhaust should be clear when the car is warm
• Excessive white smoke can suggest water and oil mixing together by a blown head gasket

• Pedal should be firm and stopping should feel normal

• If there is a scraping or shuttering pedal there is probably damage to the brake shoes which will require immediate replacement
• A scraping noise in the brakes suggests that the rotors need to be turned or replaced

• Hard-turning steering wheels indicate problems with the power steering unit

• A steering wheel that throbs indicates a contaminated fluid in the power steering reservoir

• If the vehicle begins to veer to the right or left, an alignment is needed
• If the veer is extreme, it is possible that there are suspension problems that could prove to be costly

• Make sure to check all lights and signals
• Make sure the heat and air-conditioner are working
• Try to roll down all windows, either by hand if their manual or by using the electric buttons
• Lock and unlock all the doors

• Make sure to look over the body for rust
• Look carefully at the paint for surface bumps
• Bumps underneath the paint could imply rust or bondo