Having a teen driver often tests your nerves like no other, but providing your teen with the right vehicle can certainly ease the stress. To help search for the ideal auto, AxleGeeks created a list of the best cars for teen drivers. An authority on cars and car brands, AxleGeeks recently launched an app to provide users with the latest information on the go.

To identify the best cars for teen drivers, we focused on fuel efficiency, safety and price. We compiled models earning more than 25 miles per gallon with a 5-star rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and either Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ awards from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Finally, we ranked them from most to least expensive.

#15. 2016 Volkswagen Passat

The 2016 Volkswagen Passat earned favorable marks for its 31 combined mpg, giving it a 3.3 percent advantage over other models in its segment. However, it clocks in at $22,440, making it more expensive than sedans offered by Mazda and Chevrolet.

#14. 2016 Subaru Forester AWD

Subaru is the safest car brand available, making the Forester a smart choice for your teen. However, its combined 25 mpg is 2 percent lower than industry averages, and its cost of $22,395 renders it the most expensive SUV on the list.

#13. 2016 Honda Accord

The 2016 Honda Accord achieved the highest safety ratings from the IIHS and the NHTSA, and boasts 28 combined mpg. Moreover, its price is 17 percent lower than other cars in its segment, making it an enticing choice to consider.

#12. 2016 Chrysler 200

Despite the 2016 Chrysler 200’s fuel efficiency, which falls slightly below par relative to its competitors, it boasts an affordable price when compared to the average cost of a 2016 midsize sedan.

#11. 2016 Hyundai Sonata

The 2016 Hyundai Sonata touts affordability and excellent efficiency: Its starting price of $21,750 is 19 percent less expensive than other midsize sedans, and its 31 combined mpg gives it an edge over competitors like the 2016 Chrysler 200.

#10. 2016 Subaru Legacy AWD

The 2016 Subaru Legacy earned top safety ratings, thanks in part to its all-wheel drive capabilities. Furthermore, its 30 combined mpg surpassed the averages set by midsize sedans in its segment.

#9. 2016 Subaru Crosstrek AWD

For a compact SUV, the 2016 Subaru Crosstrek is an excellent value, costing only $21,595, which makes it significantly less expensive than other models in its segment. Though its fuel efficiency falls below others listed, it easily beats its industry competitors, maximizing your savings.

#8. 2016 Mazda 6

This sedan not only boasts the IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award and 30 combined mpg, but its low price of $21,495 makes it less expensive than many of its midsize sedan counterparts.

#7. 2016 Volkswagen Golf

Similar to the 2016 Mazda 6, the Volkswagen Golf earned the highest safety ratings, and its 30 combined mpg places it in line with others in its segment. However, the Volkswagen Golf does it all at a lower cost.

#6. 2016 Mazda 3 4-Door Hatchback

This hatchback earned the best fuel efficiency among all models listed here, clocking in at 34 combined mpg. Additionally, its low price places it well below the average cost of a compact hatchback, providing you with excellent savings.

#5. 2016 Subaru Impreza AWD

The 2016 Subaru Impreza features excellent safety ratings and a great price, elevating it above the 2016 Volkswagen Golf. The only drawback is its fuel economy of 29 mpg, which puts it at a disadvantage when compared to more efficient sedans, like the Mazda 3.

#4. 2016 Mazda 3

Like its hatchback counterpart, the 2016 Mazda 3 sedan boasts 34 combined mpg. Additionally, its price of $17,845 also gives it a significant edge over its competitors.

#3. 2016 Volkswagen Jetta

The 2016 Volkswagen Jetta is among the most efficient models on the list, earning 33 combined mpg. In addition, it earned the IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award and is 16 percent less expensive than other models in its segment.

#2. 2016 Kia Soul Wagon

The only compact wagon to earn a spot on the list, the 2016 Kia Soul maximizes safety and affordability. However, it falls behind in fuel efficiency relative to other compact wagons.

#1. 2016 Chevrolet Sonic

The 2016 Chevrolet Sonic earned the best car for teens due to its outstanding affordability. With a starting price of $14,345, it is significantly less expensive than the average cost of subcompact sedans. Additionally, with great safety features and excellent fuel efficiency, the Sonic delivers incredible value.

Overview of the Best Cars for Teens

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Brand recognition and fuel efficiency are two major factors people consider when purchasing new vehicles. Regardless of short-term fluctuations in gas prices, a car's fuel economy impacts the day-to-day costs of going with a particular model.

The automakers are incentivized to build efficient cars too. President Barack Obama announced new fuel efficiency standards back in 2012, instating a brand minimum average of 54.5 combined miles per gallon by 2025.

With this in mind, which brands are well on their way toward achieving this goal? AxleGeeks ranked the biggest brands based on average fuel efficiency.

See the Most Efficient Brands

#15. Nissan

Nissan's cars get an average fuel economy of 24.5 mpg. When compared to Japanese non-luxury brands, this falls short of the average 27.5 mpg. If you're shopping for an efficient Nissan, your best bet is with a sedan or coupe, which offer better fuel economy relative to competitors.

#14. Acura

Acura is the only luxury brand to make the list, as its vehicle lineup earns on average 25 combined miles per gallon. A big reason for this is the advancements Acura has made, including its intelligent valve control system, which helps its engines operate at high performance standards while keeping efficiency high, as well.

#13. Toyota

Toyota, as a brand, is known for its fuel-efficient vehicles and good reliability. With its lineup averaging 26.5 miles per gallon, it falls low on the list compared to competitors like Honda. However, Toyota does have pick-ups in its lineup, and they've improved their full efficiency to a degree recently.

A good illustration is the Toyota Camry, which went from 22 city miles per gallon with its 2010 model to 25 city mpg in 2016.

#12. Hyundai

Hyundai vehicles average 27 combined miles per gallon, giving the manufacturer an advantage over other brands like Toyota. Hyundai strives to make some of its vehicles more efficient by equipping them with four-cylinder engines and responsive six-speed automatic transmissions.

#11. Mitsubishi

What makes Mitsubishi distinctive is that, though its vehicle lineup is small, all vehicles but its Lancer Evolution model earn at least 30 mpg or more on the highway. With that said, its vehicles haven’t seen a substantial increase in efficiency as of late.

For example, its 2005 Lancer Model earned 34 highway mpg; its 2016 model delivers 35 highway mpg. While both outputs are impressive, it illustrates Mitsubishi has a ways to go to meet coming efficiency mandates.

#10. Kia

Kia’s lineup also earns a combined 27 miles per gallon. What aids Kia’s vehicles in delivering efficiency is its Gasoline Direct Injection engine. This engine works by injecting pressurized fuel into cylinders as the engine goes through its combustion cycle, resulting in increased efficiency and lower emissions.

#9. Scion

Scion embraces efficiency through the design of its vehicles. Its 2016 iA model features an aerodynamic body to reduce wind resistance, resulting in a sedan that averages 37 combined mpg.

#8. Volkswagen

The German manufacturer’s lineup earns a combined 28 miles per gallon, making its offerings more efficient than BMW's.

Helping its average are multiple hybrid models and the e-Golf, an affordable electric car starting under $30,000.

#7. MINI

Its combined fuel efficiency of 28 mpg for its lineup is impressive, considering it makes MINI’s automobiles more efficient than Hyundai and Toyota. MINI continues to tinker with improvements, but hasn't changed much when it comes to its most popular model, the MINI Cooper. The 2005 MINI Cooper earned 36 highway mpg, while its 2016 counterpart earns 39 highway mpg.

#6. Subaru

Subaru continues to be a good brand due to its vehicle reliability. Subaru’s Boxer Engine is a big reason for its improved efficiency, offering a horizontal design. This positioning allows the engine to easily transfer power to the drivetrain, resulting in increased efficiency.

#5. Honda

Honda is a brand that's well-known for its dependability, and its efficiency isn’t too shabby either. With its vehicle lineup earning 29.25 miles per gallon, it makes Honda more efficient than many of its competitors. Moreover, Honda has made rapid gains in improving its models’ efficiency, as the 2008 Honda Civic earned 34 highway miles per gallon and the 2016 Civic delivers 42 highway mpg.

#4. Mazda

Mazda continues to be one of the best car brands due to its exceptional fuel efficiency. As an illustration, it has three models that earn an EPA-estimated 40 mpg or more on the highway, which is remarkable and more in line with the coming mandate standards. It also makes its lineup more efficient than both Toyota and Honda.

#3. FIAT

Known for its distinctive Italian styling, Fiat also delivers efficient vehicles. Its lineup, though small, earns on average 31 combined mpg. Each of its gasoline engine vehicles deliver at least 33 highway mpg or more while its electric offering — the 2015 Fiat 500e — has an exceptional equivalent efficiency of 122 city mpg.

#2. Smart

Don’t let the size of its vehicles fool you, Smart engineered these impressive models with Mercedes Benz. Smart’s models excel in performance and efficiency, delivering a combined 35.5 mpg on average, making them excellent commuter cars.

#1. Tesla

Tesla embodies the future of automobile engineering. While certainly on the more expensive end of the spectrum — its Model S begins at $59,500 after tax savings — Tesla vehicles deliver great performance with their electric motors. This also represents significant fuel savings for you, as according to Tesla, you could save an estimated $8,000 in fuel charges over five years of use. Tesla cars get the equivalent of 94 mpg.

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A car's safety equipment and crash-test performance can play a pivotal role in shaping your buying decision; this is why finding the safest brands can aid you in selecting a vehicle that gives you peace of mind.

To find the safest car brands, AxleGeeks took into account the percentage of 2015-2016 vehicles per brand that earned a five-star overall rating with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Moreover, we also looked at the ratings from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), which assigns top safety pick ratings to vehicles that display high levels of protection and offer crash-prevention technology. Lastly, we compared different safety offerings each manufacturer equips its models with to identify which brands offer the most safety features across their vehicle lineups.

Based on the compiled information, here are the 15 safest car brands.

#15. Volkswagen

The German manufacturer made the list because 15.4 percent of its vehicles earned a five-star overall safety rating from the NHTSA, giving it a slight edge over other German non-luxury brands.

However, Volkswagen equips only 3.8 percent of its models with adaptive cruise control, resulting in a significant disadvantage when compared to all German brands — where 33.8 percent of vehicles come with this safety feature.

#14. Infiniti

Similar to Volkswagen, 15.4 percent of Infiniti’s lineup earned an overall five-star NHTSA safety rating. Unlike Volkswagen, Infiniti also earned the IIHSA Top Safety Pick+ on 15.4 percent of its lineup, providing it with a substantial edge on all Japanese luxury brands.

Infiniti also equips more of its vehicles with adaptive cruise control (53.8 percent) than its luxury counterparts average (33.2 percent).

#13. Toyota

Over 17 percent of Toyota’s vehicles earned a five-star overall rating from the NHTSA, allowing it to have an advantage over non-luxury Japanese brands, where the average per lineup is 15.7 percent.

Toyota also equips 27.5 percent of its vehicles with a pre-collision safety system, while the average for all Japanese non-luxury brands is 25 percent.

#12. GMC

GMC's safety offerings illustrate its high level of commitment to supplying safe vehicles, as 18.8 percent of its lineup earned a five-star overall safety rating, putting it right in line with the average for other American non-luxury brands.

Meanwhile, GMC offers head-up display in 18.8 percent of its models; only 2.5 percent of other American non-luxury brand lineups offer this feature.

#11. Ford

Over 19 percent of Ford’s lineup earned a five-star safety rating from the NHTSA. Adding to this is Ford's sizeable advantage over other American non-luxury brands: 4.3 percent of its vehicles earned the IIHS Top Safety Pick award while its competitors averaged 2.5 percent per lineup.

Moreover, more Ford vehicles come with adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring and rearview cameras than the competition. However, to its detriment, only 2.1 percent of Ford's models come with a pre-collision system, which is woefully short when compared to all non-luxury brands, where the average is 10.2 percent per brand lineup.

#10. Chevrolet

In total, 22.5 percent of Chevy's lineup earned a five-star overall NHTSA safety rating, giving it a slight edge on competitors like Ford.

Chevy shines with its post-collision system offerings, as 37.5 percent of its vehicles come equipped with this system — 23 percent of other American brand lineups come with a similar feature.

#9. Volvo

Volvo had 7.1 percent of its lineup earn the IIHS Top Safety Pick+ Rating, putting it among the best brands in this regard. Volvo stands apart from other brands by equipping more of its vehicles with adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, lane-departure warning and rearview cameras.

Its NTSA five-star average of 28.6 percent is over double the average for luxury brand lineups.

#8. Cadillac

For a luxury brand, Cadillac touts an array of safe vehicles, as 31.6 percent of its models earned a five-star overall safety rating from the NHTSA.

Compared to the 11.5 percent average for all luxury brands, Cadillac has a significant advantage in safety performance. Additionally, 26.3 percent of its vehicles come with a pre-collision safety system. By comparison, 11.8 percent of luxury brand models offer this.

#7. Kia

Nearly 5 percent of Kia’s vehicles have the IIHS Top Safety Rating whereas the average for all non-luxury brands is 3.3 percent. Adding to Kia’s favor is the fact it offers more vehicles with adaptive cruise control and head-up display than the average for its competition.

A high 33 percent of Kia's fleet received a five-star NHTSA overall rating.

#6. Lincoln

Over 8 percent of Lincoln’s vehicles have the Top Safety Pick Rating from the IIHS. This is an impressive achievement when you consider that, for all American luxury brands, the average is 3 percent per lineup.

Lincoln offers more safety equipment per model. As an illustration, 33.3 percent of its models come with blind-spot monitoring while the average is 16.9 percent for other luxury brands.

#5. Honda

Safety is an integral part of Honda’s design, resulting in 35.3 percent of its lineup earning a five-star NHTSA overall safety rating. What’s more, Honda is second among all brands for its IIHS Top Safety Pick Ratings, with 11.8 percent of its vehicles making the list.

Nearly 18 percent of Honda's vehicles come with blind-spot monitoring compared to the 10.4 percent average per lineup for other Japanese non-luxury brands.

#4. Subaru

Across the board, Subaru excels in safety accolades. Nearly 36 percent of its vehicles received a five-star overall rating from the NHTSA, while 7.1 percent had the honor of gaining the IIHS Top Safety Pick+ Rating.

Furthermore, Subaru tops the charts for its percent of vehicles with the IIHS Top Safety Pick Rating, at 14.3 percent. On average Subaru equips 42.9 percent of its models with adaptive cruise control. By comparison, all non-luxury brands average 14.8 percent for this feature.

#3. Hyundai

Over 39 percent of Hyundai's lineup earned a five-star NHTSA overall safety rating. An area of improvement for Hyundai moving forward is increased adaptive cruise control. Currently, it equips just 7.1 percent of its models with this feature, equating to less than half the 14.8 percent average of all non-luxury brand lineups.

#2. Buick

Buick’s brand overhaul continues, as it’s second on the list with 50 percent of its models earning a five-star NHTSA overall rating. Buick equips 16.7 percent of its models with a pre-collision safety system, earning it an advantage over the 10.2 percent average for all non-luxury brands.

#1. Acura

Acura does a remarkable job developing vehicles with exceptional safety performance. Nearly 73 percent of its models have a five-star NHTSA overall safety rating, while 18.2 percent earned the IIHS Top Safety Pick+, making the brand the safest among vehicle manufacturers.

Review of the Safest Brands

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