Generally speaking, the less expensive a vehicle is to purchase, the less expensive it is to insure. In addition, domestic makes are usually less expensive to insure than foreign makes.

Along with factors such as your own driving record, your zip code and the demographics of the drivers in your household, the make and model of your vehicle can have an effect on your insurance premium.

Collision-damage costs are one of the major factors in differentiating the cost of insuring one type of car over another. You also will want to find out how attractive the auto is to thieves.

Vehicles that typically are the most expensive to insure tend to be either high horsepower, high dollar or expensive to repair. Higher horsepower autos are statistically favored by risky drivers that will likely drive the car faster and get into more accidents. That will send insurance rates up for everyone who owns a similar car.

If a car is a popular target for thieves, your insurance company might charge you higher rates since they feel there is a higher risk for it to be stolen and parts might be in higher demand and thus cost more. Also if you are driving a high-priced car, it will likely cost more to fix after a collision. This fact can cause insurance to be higher on that type of car.

Some of the cars that topped the most expensive collision loss list (according to the 2002 to 2004 data from the Highway Loss Data Institute) include:

• Mercedes CL-Class
• Subaru Impreza WRX
• Honda S2000
• Jaguar XJ & XK convertible
• Lexus IS 300

From a statistical standpoint, the safest models tend to be the full-sized family sedan-type car. Insurance companies and crash analysts have recognized that vehicles linked with family transportation, such as family sedans, minivans, and station wagons, generally get in fewer crashes than those vehicle with higher horsepower.

A list of the least expensive automobiles to insure, in terms of collision losses, includes cars such as:

• Volvo XC90
• Chevrolet Malibu Maxx
• GMC Safari
• Pontiac Montana (standard and extended model)
• Mazda MPV
• Ford Taurus station wagon

If you have certain cars in mind that you are interested in purchasing and want to find out which would be cheaper to insure you can get quotes for each car individually. You can obtain an auto insurance quote here by entering your zip code and some other basic information. There is no limit to the number of quotes you can obtain. You can simply change the vehicle information to determine the different costs for different makes and models.

For more information on this topic, please refer to our learning center article, Which Car Should You Own To Keep Your Insurance Rates Most Affordable?

Comment Update: There are too many factors, like where you live that would make a chart too large. We actually tried it and it was unhelpful and inaccurate. The easiest thing is to get a quote - put in your personal information. You can try 5, 10, 20 different cars to see which one is cheapest for your rating factors.