Automotive Research

Least & most expensive vehicles to insure

Jeep Renegade

If you're in the market for a new vehicle, your biggest consideration may be the purchase price, but the annual cost to insure that vehicle is another major factor as well. 

When determining the insurance cost for a particular car, the price of the car is just the starting point and the insurance premium for a vehicle is usually not directly proportional to the purchase price.  Insurance companies consider many other factors. For example, what is the average repair cost if the car is involved in a crash? How much damage will it likely cause to other vehicles? Based on historical data, is the vehicle more likely be in a crash compared to other models?

To answer these questions, insurers look at characteristics such as engine capacity, number of cylinders, overall vehicle size, vehicle type, horsepower, model year, and advanced safety features. Once the vehicle’s characteristics are weighed, the final insurance premium is determined by the driver component. This involves factors such as driving record, annual mileage and years of driving experience.

Each year, the Automobile Club of Southern California’s Automotive Research Center reports the least and most expensive vehicles to insure in California based on internal actuarial data. Vehicles with a starting MSRP of $100,000 or more were excluded. The results were divided based on vehicle type, and the premiums reported are the average for each model.  The following tables provide the top ten least and most expensive average premiums by vehicle category.

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These premiums were calculated using the following driver profile and coverage:

  • Single male with 24 years' driving experience
  • 15,000 annual miles
  • Clean driving record
  • $100,000/$300,000 bodily injury limits
  • $50,000 property damage limit
  • $2,000 medical payments limit
  • $500 comprehensive damage deductible
  • $500 collision damage deductible
  • $100,000/$300,000 uninsured motorist bodily injury
  • No rental coverage
  • No uninsured deductible waiver
  • Anti-theft discount applied (assume burglar alarm)
  • Garaging discount
  • No multi-car discount
  • No multi-policy discount
  • 1 car/one driver on policy
 

Passenger cars

Least expensive to insure

Year

Make

Model

Starting MSRP

Avg. premium

2016

Mini

Countryman 2WD

$22,750

$1,569

2016

Smart

Fortwo

$14,650

$1,608

2016

Subaru

Impreza Wagon 4WD

$22,095

$1,641

2016

Honda

Fit

$16,690

$1,650

2016

Buick

Verano

$21,065

$1,660

2016

Kia

Rio Hatchback

$15,495

$1,673

2016

Fiat

500x 2WD

$20,000

$1,679

2016

Fiat

500 2-door

$16,995

$1,688

2016

Fiat

500L

$19,495

$1,696

2016

Ford

Fiesta Hatchback

$14,880

$1,706

Most expensive to insure

Year

Make

Model

Starting MSRP

Avg. premium

2016

Tesla

Model S

$66,000

$5,160

2016

Maserati

Ghibli

$70,600

$4,311

2016

BMW

750 Xi

$94,400

$3,668

2016

Mercedes-Benz

S Class Hybrid 2WD

$95,650

$3,555

2016

Porsche

Panamera Hybrid 2WD

$96,100

$3,536

2016

Porsche

Panamera 2WD/4WD

$78,100

$3,455

2016

BMW

740i

$81,300

$3,437

2016

Jaguar

XJ 4WD

$77,900

$3,414

2016

Audi

S7 Quattro 4WD

$82,900

$3,403

2016

Alfa Romeo

4C Spider Convertible

$65,900

$3,394

 

Sport-utility/crossover vehicles

Least expensive to insure

Year

Make

Model

Starting MSRP

Avg. premium

2016

Hyundai

Tucson 2WD

$22,700

$1,476

2016

Mazda

CX-3 2WD/4WD

$19,960

$1,478

2016

Jeep

Compass 4WD

$21,695

$1,496

2016

Chevrolet

Trax 2WD

$20,300

$1,506

2016

Chevrolet

Trax 4WD

$21,800

$1,531

2016

Jeep

Renegade

$17,995

$1,549

2016

Honda

HR-V 4WD

$21,315

$1,569

2016

Subaru

Forester

$25,795

$1,585

2016

Subaru

Outback

$24,995

$1,592

2016

Jeep

Cherokee 2WD

$23,495

$1,596

Least expensive to insure

Year

Make

Model

Starting MSRP

Avg. premium

2016

Mercedes-Benz

GLE Class Plug-In Hybrid 4WD

$65,550

$3,129

2016

BMW

X6 2WD

$60,600

$2,976

2016

BMW

X5 M 4WD

$98,800

$2,841

2016

Porsche

Cayenne Hybrid 4WD

$77,200

$2,790

2016

Cadillac

Escalade 4WD

$75,570

$2,689

2016

Cadillac

Escalade ESV 4WD

$78,570

$2,674

2016

Cadillac

Escalade 2WD

$72,970

$2,660

2016

BMW

X6 4WD

$62,900

$2,617

2016

Cadillac

Escalade ESV 2WD

$75,970

$2,587

2016

Infiniti

Qx80 4WD

$63,250

$2,477

 

Pickup trucks

Least expensive to insure

Year

Make

Model

Starting MSRP

Avg. premium

2016

Nissan

Frontier King Cab 2WD

$21,460

$1,694

2016

Ram

3500 4WD

$35,405

$1,753

2016

Chevrolet/GMC

Silverado/Sierra 3500 2WD

$34,635

$1,770

2016

Chevrolet/GMC

Silverado/Sierra 2500 4WD

$35,910

$1,770

2016

Ram

3500 2WD

$32,285

$1,792

2016

Ram

2500 4WD

$34,800

$1,805

2016

Ram

2500 2WD

$31,780

$1,821

2016

Chevrolet/GMC

Colorado/Canyon 2WD

$20,100

$1,833

2016

Chevrolet/GMC

Silverado/Sierra 2500 2WD

$32,955

$1,834

2016

Chevrolet/GMC

Silverado/Sierra 3500 4WD

$37,010

$1,848

Least expensive to insure

Year

Make

Model

Starting MSRP

Avg. premium

2016

Ram

1500 2WD

$33,570

$2,204

2016

Nissan

Titan XD Crew 4WD

$38,290

$2,170

2016

Ford

F-150 Crew 4WD

$31,185

$2,162

2016

Ford

F-150 Crew 2WD

$26,540

$2,162

2016

Ram

1500 4WD

$36,540

$2,157

2016

Chevrolet/GMC

Silverado/Sierra 1500 4WD

$35,200

$2,146

2016

Toyota

Tundra 4WD

$32,190

$2,131

2016

Chevrolet/GMC

Silverado/Sierra 1500 2WD

$27,195

$2,129

2016

Nissan

Titan XD Crew 2WD

$35,290

$2,119

2016

Toyota

Tundra  2WD

$29,140

$2,108

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