CHEAP WHEELS

WHICH AFFORDABLE SUBCOMPACT SUV SHOULD YOU GET?

- STEFAN OGBAC

We interrupt your regularly scheduled program of dream machines with a break into the real world—where millennials wrangle underwhelming paychecks against a mountain of student debt, high rent, and the necessity of car ownership.

Enter our showdown of lovable, affordable SUVs. Sure, there will be compromises—what do you expect from a car that costs “just” a semester’s tuition at Skidmore but doesn’t have the power to leave skid marks? That said, the better entries won’t make you feel like you compromised.

As SUVs continue to dominate the automotive landscape, it was only a matter of time until every purse and purpose was satisfied. Now a new niche is emerging within the subcompact SUV segment, aimed at consumers on a budget and in search of a higher seating position and more cargo space than a sedan offers. These models blur the definition of a traditional SUV because none offers four-wheel or all-wheel drive in the U.S. So they’re more like tall hatchbacks— econoboxes on stilts. But go ahead, call them SUVs. Everyone else does.

Our contenders are a mix of new and established nameplates in the subcompact SUV class. All of them are from Asia, and all are powered by fuel-sipping, short-on-power engines that send thrust to the wheels via CVTs. Is there any fun to be had here? Surprisingly, yes.