Kia Soul one of Women’s Choice Awards “High Five” vehicles.
They’re what women want when purchasing a car.
Based on overall, safety and reliability ratings, a Women’s Choice Awards national survey identified 45 vehicles priced at up to $80,000 that passed the test of “what matters most to women.”
“Women buy 52 percent of all new cars sold in the U.S., influence more than 85 percent of all car purchases and are the fastest-growing segment of buyers for new and used cars,” said a survey report. “All told, women have full or partial say over a staggering $80 billion worth of spending on cars.”
Survey participants told the Choice Awards that value, safety, reliability, convenience and comfort were the most important considerations in their purchase decisions.
All of those factors were represented in the overall, safety and reliability Women’s Choice Awards.
But we took the results a step further and identified a group of vehicles dubbed the “High Five” which captured all three awards, comprising one under $20,000 and four priced $20,000 to $50,000.
Following are those five vehicles:
High Five
Under $20,000 (1)
Kia Soul
$20,000-$50,000 (4)
BMW 2 Series
Buick Envision
Kia Sedona
Volkswagen Golf GTI
Twenty manufacturers from Ford, Chevrolet, Honda and Toyota to Genesis, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche are represented in the following lists, with each category comprising three price ranges.
Overall
The Honda Civic is among Women’s Choice Awards overall winners.
Under $20,000 (3)
Honda Fit
Kia Forte
Kia Soul
$20,000-$50,000 (13)
Audi A3
BMW 2 Series
Buick Envision
Genesis G80
Honda Civic
Hyundai Santa Fe
Kia Optima
Kia Sedona
Lexus NX
Mazda MX-5 Miata
Toyota 86
Volkswagen Golf GTI
Volkswagen Golf SportWagen
Over $50,000 (3)
BMW 5 Series
Mercedes-Benz E-Class
Porsche 718 Cayman
Picks for the safest car are based on features survey participants consider most important, such as adaptive headlights, rear cross-traffic detection, forward collision warning and rearview cameras. Cars with above-average crash prevention results also were considered.
Safety
The Mitsubishi Mirage is among the lower-priced safety award winners.
Under $20,000 (5)
Ford Fiesta ST
Hyundai Elantra
Kia Soul
Mazda3
Mitsubishi Mirage
$20,000-$50,000 (15)
Acura RDX
BMW 2 Series
Buick Envision
Buick Regal Sportback
Chevrolet Camaro
Honda Civic
Kia Sedona
Mazda MX-5 Miata
Mini Countryman
Mini Hardtop 2-Door
Mini Hardtop 4-Door
Subaru Legacy
Volkswagen Golf
Volkswagen Golf Alltrack
Volkswagen Golf GTI
Over $50,000 (2)
Infiniti Q70
Mercedes-Benz E-Class
Besides survey results, Consumer Reports reliability ratings, vehicle recalls, length of warranties and pricing also were considered in identifying the reliability award winners.
Reliability
The Toyota 86 made the Women’s Choice Awards reliability list.
Under $20,000 (2)
Kia Soul
Volkswagen Jetta
$20,000-$50,000 (15)
Audi Q3
BMW 2 Series
Buick Envision
Buick Regal Sportback
Genesis G80
Infiniti Q60
Kia Niro
Kia Sedona
Kia Stinger
Toyota 86
Volkswagen Beetle
Volkswagen Beetle convertible
Volkswagen Golf GTI
Volkswagen Golf SportWagen
Volkswagen Passat
Over $50,000 (2)
Audi TTS
Lexus GS 350
There is no single answer to what women want when purchasing a car as these lists of vehicles show. But these ratings are a good place to start whatever your requirements.
