U.S. News Media Group released its first annual Best Cars for the Money awards. The U.S. News Best Cars for the Money awards recognize 14 vehicles that earn the highest marks for overall value and appeal within their respective categories. In determining the award winners, U.S. News has taken its newly released 2009 Car Rankings and combined them with total cost of ownership data provided by IntelliChoice.com.

The 14 winners of the US News 2009 Best Cars for the Money awards are listed below:

• Subcompact Cars — Honda Fit
• Compact Cars — Hyundai Elantra
• Midsize Cars — Toyota Camry (includes Camry Hybrid)
• Full Size Cars — Toyota Avalon
• Upscale Cars — Lexus ES
• Luxury Cars — Lexus GS (includes GS Hybrid)
• Sports Cars — Mazda Miata
• Compact Crossovers/SUVs — Mazda Mazda5
• Midsize Crossovers/SUVs — Toyota Highlander (includes Highlander Hybrid)
• Luxury Crossovers/SUVs — Lexus RX (includes RX Hybrid)
• Full Size SUVs — Chevrolet Tahoe (includes Tahoe Hybrid)
• Minivans — Toyota Sienna
• Compact Pickups — Toyota Tacoma
• Full Size Pickups — Chevrolet Silverado

For a complete list of this year’s best overall values and the awards methodology, visit http://usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/cars-trucks/best-cars-for-the-money/. For more information about the Total Cost of Ownership and detailed data for cars, visit http://www.intellichoice.com.

Source: U.S. News Media Group

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To determine which are the cleanest cars around, Forbes looked at Environmental Protection Agency scores for air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. The EPA rates vehicles on a scale of 0-10, with 10 being the best.

Not surprisingly, a pair of hybrids lead the way. The Toyota Prius and the Honda Civic hybrid each rated perfect 10s in greenhouse emissions and 9.5s for air pollution.

Here’s the list:

Ford Focus

Hyundai Elantra

Kia Spectra

Pontiac G5

Nissan Altima

Mazda 3

Chevrolet Cobalt

Honda Civic CNG

Toyota Camry Hybrid

Ford Escape Hybrid

Nissan Altima Hybrid

Honda Civic Hybrid

Toyota Prius Hybrid

To read all about these vehicles, and to see a slideshow, visit Forbes.

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Gas prices have come down a bit, but they are still high. Getting to work or ferrying the kids to their various schools and activities eats up a big part of the average American budget.

Finding a less expensive vehicle is one option, but identifying real bargains can be a challenge. A car that gets good gas mileage might also lose much of its value during that first year on the road. Similarly, a vehicle that seems like a good alternative may be costly to insure. Reliability is a consideration, too.

Forbes recently attempted to identify the least expensive cars to drive over a five-year period, factoring in purchase price, fuel charges, depreciation, taxes, insurance and more.

Here’s what they came up with:

– Cadillac DTS (Luxury Sedan)

– Acura TSX (Upscale Sedan)

– Chrysler 300 (Large Sedan)

– Mitsubish Eclipse (Sporty/Sports Car)

– Mazda Miata (Convertible)

– Jeep Patriot (SUV)

– Toyota Prius (Hybrid)

– Hyundai Elantra (Family Sedan)

– Honda Fit (Hatchback)

– Toyota Yaris (Small Car)

To get all the facts and figures on these cars, and to see a slideshow, visit Forbes.com.

Related lists:

• Worst Cars Since 1990
• Most Expensive Cars to Drive
• Most Expensive Car Options
• AutoWeek’s 2008 Paris Motor Show Winners
• Best Sports Cars of 2009
• Eight Green Concept Cars
• Top Fuel-Efficient Sports Cars

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With the fall term about to start, college students are looking for the perfect car for parents to “subsidize” — or to drive off to college along with parents’ furniture, computer and life savings. And while it doesn’t take an economics major to find a great car for college — it does take a little research to find one with high marks for reliability, fuel economy, safety and of course, a reasonable price. TheCarConnection.com’s editors have studied 2008 models available for sale in the U.S., from crash-test scores to gas mileage. Of all the new cars driven and researched by TheCarConnection.com’s editors, these eight stand out:

• Ford Focus– The Ford Focus is a roomy entry-level car-and a music lover’s dream thanks to its SYNC system, a voice-activated, hands-free communications and entertainment interface that links the car to all manner of phones, PDAs, MP3 players, and portable storage devices.
• Honda Fit — The 2008 Honda Fit is a subcompact five-door hatchback with entertaining road manners and frugal fuel economy. The Fit gets 34 mpg on the highway and 28 in the city, and does it with a light touch in its controls and a roomy interior with a folding “Magic Seat” that opens a cargo area big enough for a standard-sized bicycle.
• Hyundai Elantra — The 2008 Hyundai Elantra is a recent winner of a compact-car comparison from Consumer Reports. Fuel economy is as good as 25/33 mpg. The interior is outfitted with power windows, power heated rearview mirrors, power door
  locks, remote keyless entry, and a tilt steering wheel. Options include a Bluetooth hands-free system, leather, a power sunroof and a 220-watt premium audio system with an iPod jack.
• Mitsubishi Lancer x — The Lancer is Mitsubishi’s smallest sedan and lowest-priced car in the U.S. lineup. Base versions have power windows and a CD sound system, but upscale versions can be outfitted with Bluetooth, automatic climate control, a 650-watt Rockford-Fosgate sound system, and a navigation system that includes a 30-gigabyte hard-drive music server.
• Pontiac Vibe — The five-door Vibe returns with a new body style, a pair of engines and all-wheel drive as an option. Pick from a 158-horsepower, 2.4-liter four-cylinder or stick with the base 1.8-liter four, making 132 horsepower. Both can be teamed to a manual or automatic transmission. Fuel efficiency is good and the rear seats fold flat to expand the cargo area. A 320-watt Monsoon sound system is among the options.
• Saturn Astra — The new 2008 Astra is a European-bred car from GM’s Saturn brand. It comes in two flavors — two-door hatchback and four-door hatchback. The sweet-revving four-cylinder teams well with a five-speed manual that offers a light-touch clutch; there’s a four-speed automatic offered as well. The Astra has features not often found at this price point, like steering-wheel-mounted audio controls and express-up power windows.
• Scion xB — The 2008 Scion xB is the second generation of the popular four-door hatchback sold by Toyota’s youth-oriented brand. Fuel economy is 22/28 mpg. There’s room for four or cargo room to move most of a dorm room in one trip (minus the flat-screen TV and MicroFridge).
• Suzuki SX4 Sport — The SX4 Sport is a small crossover vehicle with a wagon body, an upscale interior and plenty of driving fun. The government rates the SX4 Sport at 21/28 mpg with the manual transmission. Six airbags are standard, as are anti-lock brakes and a seven-year, 100,000-mile powertrain warranty.

For more details on finding the right new car for college, go to TheCarConnection.com.

Source: TheCarConnection.com