How to Determine the Best Vehicle Type For You

Picking the right kind of vehicle for your daily drive should be easy — or so you might think. Life is always changing, as are your needs. What works for you now in terms of a vehicle may not be a good fit in the future. Alternatively, you may be better off staying with a vehicle type that’s similar to what you have now. At Hyundai of Trenton, we’re here to help you find a model that meets your needs and delivers delight every time you get behind the wheel. Here’s a guide that helps you determine the right type of vehicle for you.

Ask Yourself What’s Your Primary Use of the Vehicle

Hyundai logo close-up by Ivan Radic licensed with CC BY 2.0

Your vehicle is your home away from home. It gets to your destination, carries your cargo, and brings your passengers along with you. Zeroing on the main use of your vehicle helps you narrow down the type of vehicle that best meets your needs. For example, if you drive around to different locations daily, although you’re not a delivery driver or driving for a ride-sharing company, a sedan or compact SUV would make a lot of sense in terms of fuel economy, maneuverability, and ease of parking.

Typically, you should consider your needs first in terms of your main use of the vehicle. But there are other considerations you may have, such as taking kids to various places or if you like to go car camping. That’s when you need to think about the other uses of a vehicle.

What Else Do You Think You’ll Do With the Vehicle?

At some point, you’ll need to use your vehicle for something other than its main use. Maybe you start a garden every spring and need to haul bags of dirt and containers of plants. An SUV-type vehicle makes this job easier, even if you make only a few trips. Another consideration for the type of vehicle you buy is accessibility. It’s far easier to get into a taller car than a shorter one, especially if you have mobility issues, but everyone is different in terms of what works for them.

Other issues to consider are how often you’ll find yourself making long trips for work or play, where you intend to stay, if there are family members to consider, etc. Think about how you use your vehicle over the course of a few weeks, then use that information to help you pick a vehicle that most closely matches your primary and secondary needs.

Understanding the Different Types of Vehicles

Vehicles come in all shapes and sizes in order to get you to where you’re going, help you haul stuff or people, and enable you to reach remote destinations. The following is a guide to give you an idea of what each type of vehicle is designed for.

Compact

Compacts are usually two-door cars with hatchbacks. They’re smaller than a sedan but have spacious interiors that don’t feel cramped. A compact can hold five people in a pinch, but it won’t be comfortable. They’re better with a maximum of four full-sized adults.

Another detail about the compact is the fact it’s a hatchback. The rear seats can fold down to add more cargo space in the rear, enabling you to carry bigger items or a small load of materials. The engines in compact cars tend to consist of a V-4 engine with just enough power to get you places without breaking a sweat. They’re also typically front-wheel drive.

Sedan

A sedan is a mid-sized vehicle with two or four doors and can comfortably fit five adults. It has a full-sized trunk that can extend into the rear of the cabin when the back seats are down, although this isn’t standard in all sedans. The interior is typically plush, and the suspension is soft. You’re not going to be making tight corners at speed in a sedan.

Sedans can be front, rear, or all-wheel-drive and feature larger engines such as a V-6 or V-8. They’re designed to accelerate with torque and cruise at speed without effort.

SUV

SUVs range in size from sub-compact to full-size. The defining form factor of an SUV is its shape. SUVs were initially built on truck platforms and borrowed their design cues from pickups. Over time, the SUV has gained its distinctive style that usually consists of a high roof line, high ground clearance, four doors, hatchback, and sometimes even a roof rack.

The size of an engine in an SUV is dependent on the size of the vehicle. A sub-compact SUV usually has a V-4, while a full-size one comes with a V-8. Their drive trains include everything from front-wheel drive to four-wheel drive and other configurations.

Length of Ownership

Everyone has different intentions regarding how long they’ll own their vehicle, but sometimes those intentions change for several reasons. As you look at the different types of vehicles, consider how long you expect to own the car. Do you intend to keep the vehicle for a long period of time as it meets your needs? Or do you expect to buy a different vehicle once the current one doesn’t fulfill your needs?

It’s a fact that there are always unexpected circumstances that can cause you to need a different vehicle. But those circumstances tend to be a future concern, not an immediate one. Buy the car you need now and counter the changes in your driving needs when they arise.

Ideally, you’d like to keep the vehicle for as long as possible to maximize your investment. The longer you can own your vehicle past its payoff has the effect of lowering its cost of ownership. Sometimes life throws you a curve ball that pushes you to trade in your current vehicle for one that fits the shift in your needs. Provided you’ve kept your vehicle in good condition, it can go into the used car market and provide transportation for someone who’s in need.

We hope this look at the different types of vehicles helps you decide which one works best for you. At Hyundai of Trenton, we want to make sure our customers get the right vehicle for their needs, no matter if they’re looking for a pre-owned sedan, used SUV or crossover, or a certified used Hyundai vehicle. Let us know if we missed anything by dropping us a line.