Hyundai Accent

The Accent scores near the top of our subcompact Ratings in both sedan and hatchback versions. There's nothing fancy about this car but it hits the mark well for basic, sensible transportation. It's economical to buy and run -- we got 31 mpg with the GLS sedan with an automatic and 32 mpg for the stick-shift Sport hatchback. The 138-hp four-cylinder engine provides adequate power and handling is responsive, somewhat more so in the Sport model. The well-constructed cabin offers plenty of room up front. As is normal for this class, the ride is jittery and the rear seats are somewhat cramped. The cabin is fairly noisy, but not offensively so. We can no longer recommend the Accent because it scored a poor in the IIHS small-overlap crash test.