These Are The New Cars Our Readers Would Buy With A $50,000 Budget

Last week my colleague Andy Kalmowitz asked our wonderful readers to share which new cars you would buy with a $50,000 budget. That figure is just about the average price for new cars in the U.S. — in January it went down slightly to a still-high $49,191 — and there’s a lot of different sorts of new cars to choose from at that price. Andy’s example was a good one: the Honda Civic Type R, which still just comes in under the $50,000 mark for the 2026 model year. 

Normally Andy would be rounding up his favorite answers himself, but he’s currently on vacation with his fiancée in Paris, so I’m covering it for him this time. (How annoying and selfish of him, I know.) Luckily you lot came up with a great variety of answers, so I had a lot to choose from when picking my favorites. Keep reading to see what new cars your fellow Jalops would buy with a $50,000 budget — oh, and if it were me, I’d spent that fifty grand on a Mercedes-Benz CLA EV.

I don’t have to worry about a rear-facing car seat anymore, and my son can buckle himself into the car seat, so I’m going Mustang GT with the manual transmission. I know it’s not a GREAT manual, but still. I’d love to be able to get the GT Performance Pack, but that’s about $55k brand new. 

$50k gets you a Mustang GT, with a decent color, and racing stripe with about $20 left over after destination.

Submitted by: MrMcGeeIn3D, Mark H

It wouldn’t be my choice, but I understand.

We’re replacing 2 cars this year, 01 Explorer with 5.0 and 13 Optima. Most likely we’re getting hybrid version of Rav4, CRV or Forester.

My wife’s Santa Fe is getting long in tooth, and has been the most reliable car we’ve ever owned. I suspect she would want a new Santa Fe Hybrid AWD in Limited trim, which should get us in below $50,000.

I would put my money where my mouth is and buy the 2026-7 Subaru Forester Wilderness. I may be the only person from here to Autopia that likes the way it looks, but I would definitely own one of those.

Easy. A 2026 Lexus UX300h F Sport in Cloudburst Grey with the Birch interior. MSRP of $46k. They’re a little on the small side, but fuel efficiency is excellent, it’s comfortable and ergonomic, and zippy enough to scoot. Not to mention Lexus reliability and longevity.

Submitted by: Ken, Datanerd, tallestdwarf, Papa Chris

Don’t let annoying car enthusiasts bully you. Sometimes a boring crossover is exactly what you need.

Nissan Z . Everyone seems to hate the Z but its growing on me. Manual, rear wheel drive and Turbo. Currently I’m driving a mx-5 so it would give me some extra room

Absolutely. I’m seriously considering the 2027 Z. It’s getting a mild refresh that I think looks amazing. It also has a new British Racing Green like color that I’m swooning over.

Submitted by: Joe Joe, Sgt Beavis

I support this.

If I can get a Giulia for under $50k new, I would take that.

Otherwise, none of them. I drive manual for my sports cars – no desirable ones are within budget, and no other commuter appeals to me whatsoever.

Submitted by: ChaosphereVIII

The cheapest new Giulia is $48,245, leaving you a little money left over for maintenance. I’d rather have the man in the photos than the car, though.

2026 Prius Limited AWD with the premium package, all-weather floor mats and delivery comes in at just a little over $40K. Good enough for me.

Submitted by: Wretched_Genius

The new Prius rules.

If I can squeeze under $50k for a Golf R…I’m there.

If not. A loaded GTI.

Gotta be a VW Golf R all day, every day. It’s still the Swiss Army Knife of cars, it can do just about anything you want it to do and still give good reliability and performance. The lack of manual on the new ones is a bummer, but I bet there are still a couple NOS manuals kicking around waiting to be snapped up. They come in good colors, the seats are super comfortable and all the options you need and want are included. Easy choice.

Submitted by: Keith Jackson, Mike

The 2026 Golf R comes in at $50,730 including destination, so I’ll allow it.

$50k is tricky. The Z you want is $52k, the Mustang you want is $55k, CTR is wrong wheel drive, etc…. So I will go with a fully loaded GR86 and money to spend on tyres.

Submitted by: RC350F

I’m surprised more people didn’t say this.

A 2026 BMW 230i — with or without xDrive. Owned a ’22 230i (RWD) and it was amazing. Instant acceleration, terrific handling, and luxurious (enough) on the inside. Am in an M240i now but that doesn’t fit the price range here.

Seriously, a fully loaded or nearly fully loaded 230i has a ton of torque & horses. Add in harman/kardon, adaptive cruise & 360º camera (heated seats/steering wheel are a must) and it’s a daily driver that’s super-comfy and offers the acceleration/spirited driving when wanted. Also, most importantly, only 2 doors. Plenty of room to haul stuff. It’s nearly the perfect car.

Submitted by: Michael Sadowski

This is a good answer.

Do I get $50,000CAD or do I convert $50,000USD to CAD giving me $68,107?

$50,000 would get me into a new Outback Wilderness (I can come up with the other $2000). Lots of room for gear, dual X-Mode is so much better than people understand, it’ll tow a rafting/kayak trailer, and if need be, I can sleep in it.

For $68,107 I’d be into a GR Supra 6MT so fast it would make your head spin. I don’t care that it’s a BMW under the skin. I love this car. I’ve seen a few around town (it’s rarer than Porsche 911s here), and they turn my head every time. In the absence of being able to afford a Porsche 718, this looks and feels perfect for me.

Submitted by: JohnnyWasASchoolBoy

Sure!

If you’re handing me $50K and I have to buy a brand new car with it, the first thing I’m doing is taking $25K and investing it in Large Cap US Index funds, Small Cap US Index funds, and International (non-US) Index funds. $15K of that $25K will go into Roth IRAs and the other $10K into an after-tax account.

Then I’m buying a 2026 Chevrolet Trax LS with the LS Convenience and Driver Confidence packages. Should be around $25K.

That way I split the difference. 50% towards our future, and the other 50% towards a practical vehicle.

Pay Yourselves First, people. 💲🤑

Submitted by: Anonymous Person

I don’t know what any of this means.