10 Cars for $10K: The Best Used Cars for $10,000

At Cars.com, we focus on new cars, but when it comes to overall car sales, used cars own the field. CNW Marketing Research reports shoppers bought more than 40 million of them in 2012, the highest total since 2007. For every new car sold, nearly three used cars changed hands.

Shoppers are still taking the used route despite near-record used-car prices, which soared so high that we suspended our $10,000 used-car recommendations — once a regular Cars.com feature — for two years. Blame the recession, which slashed new-car sales and the resulting supply of late-model used cars that are typically traded in for them.

Used-car prices are coming back to earth, according to Manheim's Used Vehicle Value Index, but that's not to say used-car prices are low again. They have ebbed enough to give $10K cars another go.

Cars.com's Mileage Tests of Hyundai and Kia Vehicles In Line With EPA Results

In the wake of today's news that Hyundai and Kia will reimburse owners for bad mileage estimates, we've compiled the results of our mileage tests from Shootouts and other challenges we've conducted over the past few years that involved the affected cars and SUVs.

In September 2011, we took the previously 40-mpg-rated Hyundai Elantra and pitted it against special "fuel-saving" trims from the competition designed to eke out a few mpgs more to hit that vaunted 40 mpg highway figure. The Elantra's new highway rating is 38 mpg, and its combined rating dropped to 32 mpg from 33.

Our results put the Hyundai in last place.

Hyundai, Kia to Pay 900,000 Owners for Bad MPG Estimates

Hyundai and Kia announced today they would reimburse owners of about 900,000 vehicles for misstated mileage ratings.

The news came after an investigation by the EPA into complaints from consumers that the two companies' mileage claims were inflated. As a result, the stated mpg ratings for 75 different trim levels over three model years will be changed, and window stickers of cars on sale will be replaced to reflect the new numbers.

Cars.com's Mileage Tests of Hyundai and Kia Vehicles In Line With EPA Results

The investigation began when the EPA received complaints from owners of the 2012 Hyundai Elantra compact sedan who said that they were not seeing gas mileage near the stated numbers. Once the EPA’s investigators confirmed a discrepancy, they broadened the audit to the rest of the vehicles.

Hyundai and Kia are owned by the same parent company in South Korea but operate separately in the U.S. Both have seen phenomenal growth in the past few years, not just because of improved styling and quality, but also for their exceptional fuel economy.

The changes affect the 2011-2013 model years with mileage ratings dropping from 1 to 6 mpg on the highway. Combined mileage ratings were more accurate with seven of the 43 Hyundai models and four of the 32 Kia models seeing no change in combined mileage after the audit. Twenty-four of the 43 Hyundais showed a difference of 1 mpg combined, while 11 of the 32 Kias were within 1 mpg of the original rating.

The company explained the error this way: "The fuel-economy rating discrepancies resulted from procedural errors during a process called 'coastdown' testing at the companies’ joint testing operations in Korea. Coastdown testing simulates aerodynamic drag, tire rolling resistance and drivetrain frictional losses and provides the technical data used to program the test dynamometers that generate EPA fuel economy ratings."

The two brands will announce a reimbursement program for current and former owners of the vehicles. A personalized debit card will be issued that will calculate the difference based on fuel prices and miles driven, plus 15% as a mea culpa from the automakers.

Will it be enough to satisfy consumers? That’s a question that will be asked nationwide as owners digest the news.

Below are the breakdowns of every vehicle impacted in the change, provided to Cars.com by Hyundai/Kia. We’ll have much more on this story as it develops throughout the day and coming weeks. If you have a question you’d like answered, leave it in the comments below or email us at editor@cars.com.

Five Cars Perfect for Golf Foursomes

The Ryder Cup starts this week at the Medinah Country Club in Medinah, Ill., and signals that — for much of the country — golf season is at an end. But before you pack up your clubs for the season — or if you're lucky enough to live in a state conducive to year-round golf — here are five cars that are perfect for a golf foursome thanks to a roomy cabin and most importantly, a giant trunk.

Car Backseats You Want to Sit In

We’ve told you which cars to call front-seat dibs to avoid being stuck in the backseat with leg cramps and neck spasms. It only seems appropriate to fill you in on which cars allow you to relax comfortably in the backseat and let the friend who called shotgun play road-trip navigator while you chill out and enjoy the scenery. 
 
It’s a safe bet that anything with L or XL after the model name will be an obvious candidate for calling rear-seat dibs; you’ll likely be lounging in extended-wheelbase luxury. But luxury cars aren’t the only class with big backseats. Some gems within their own classes have enough backseat room and surprise features to feel like the car was designed just to provide maximum comfort for rear passengers.

Cars.com Family Reviews the 2012 Hyundai Azera

Hyundai's redesigned full-size sedan, the Azera, shows that a car can be affordable and luxurious, according to Cars.com Family contributor Carrie Kim. The five-seat sedan is so spacious that Carrie's husband was able to stretch out in the front passenger seat even though a rear-facing child-safety seat was behind him in the second row.

2012 Hyundai Azera Review

2012 Hyundai Azera: Review Notes

Cars.com Senior Editor Kristin Varela just reviewed the redesigned Hyundai Azera, the latest generation of Hyundai's full-size sedan. The Azera represents the Korean automaker's effort to draw buyers from a competitive, if overlooked, field that includes the Ford Taurus, Toyota Avalon, Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger. Hyundai hopes the Azera can improve upon its unpopular predecessor, which hasn't broken 15,000 annual sales since 2007. That's a fraction of the 70,000-plus Chargers that Dodge shoppers took home last year. It will have its work cut out for it: All four competitors have been redesigned or significantly updated in the past 19 months.

Varela, based in Denver, praised the Azera's drivetrain and value but took issue with some controls and the seating position. Other editors, myself included, had a chance to drive an Azera tester at Cars.com's Chicago offices.

Cars.com Reviews the 2012 Hyundai Azera

According Senior Family Editor Kristin Varela, Hyundai offers luxury on a budget with its redesigned-for-2012 Azera sedan, and for the most part, it delivers. Though Varela was annoyed by a few minor shortcomings, the Azera's abundance of premium features, quiet cabin and eye-catching styling helped make up for it.

2012 Hyundai Azera Review

2012 Hyundai Azera: Car Seat Check

Hyundai's full-size sedan was redesigned for 2012 and can count among its strengths high-quality interior materials, a competent powertrain and a cavernous backseat. The Azera has plenty of room for two child-safety seats, and a wide, flat bottom seat cushion and easy to locate Latch anchors help make this a car-seat-friendly car.

For the Car Seat Check, we use a Graco SnugRide 30 rear-facing infant-safety seat, a Britax Roundabout convertible child-safety seat and Graco high-back TurboBooster seat.

Despite Slew of Upcoming Models, Large Family Sedans Are an Endangered Species

With the announcement of more sophisticated, technology-laden versions of the Toyota Avalon, Ford Taurus and Chevrolet Impala, you'd think the state of large, non-luxury family sedans was pretty sound, but think again.

Over just the past five years, the full-size family sedan market has seen its relevance halved, according to R.L. Polk & Co. The segment used to have 15 models, but in recent years that number has dwindled to just seven, says Polk. Subsequently, market share has dropped from slightly above 5% of all vehicles sold to just 2.3% in the first three months of the year, Polk reports. Today, the segment is only one-third the size of the minivan market, a segment long derided as "dead" and already abandoned by big movers and shakers like GM and Ford.