Honda Civic

The tenth-generation Civic is the reason people who like driving buy compact sedans. The chassis is tuned with more precision than anything else in the segment at the price, the 1.5-liter turbo makes useful torque from low revs, and the packaging gives it rear seat and trunk space closer to a midsize car.

The known caveat is fuel dilution on the 1.5T. In sustained cold weather with short trips, unburned fuel washes past the rings and raises the oil level, thinning it. Honda issued software and hardware updates for 2017–2018 models and revised the calibration on later cars. If you own one, check the dipstick for an oil level above the full mark and a gasoline smell, and shorten the oil change interval if you only drive short distances in winter.

Everything else about running a Civic is straightforward. Parts are cheap and universally available, brakes and suspension are conventional, and the CVT has proven durable when serviced. Resale value is among the strongest in the class, which cuts both ways — used ones are not cheap.