kbb.com Names 10 Most Fun Clunker Replacements

IRVINE, Calif., Aug. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- The 10 Most Fun Clunker Replacements, www.kbb.com/funclunkerreplacements, today were named by the expert editors from Kelley Blue Book, www.kbb.com, the leading provider of new car and used car information.

The government's Cash for Clunkers program is in full swing, and the editors of Kelley Blue Book's kbb.com are seeing new-car shoppers combining $4,500 government credits with cash rebates and going home with economical, efficient compact cars for less than $8,000 out of pocket. But what if practicality is secondary to the desire to have some fun? In that case, consumers will probably have to spend more money than $8,000 and they will have to shop carefully. For instance, popular muscle cars like the Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro and Dodge Challenger do meet the program's $45,000 price ceiling, but they do not achieve the required EPA combined fuel economy of 22 mpg. Conversely, lightweight performers like the BMW Z4, Lotus Elise and Porsche 911 are adequately fuel-efficient, but too costly.

To help new-car shoppers turn Clunker credit into driving excitement, the editors of Kelley Blue Book's kbb.com put together a list of the 10 Most Fun Clunker Replacements.

"With this seemingly once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to garner federal assistance in buying a new car, plenty of folks are maximizing their dollars and buying affordable, economical vehicles, but on the other hand, some new-car shoppers are looking for serious driving fun after years of riding around in their old clunker," said Jack R. Nerad, executive editorial director and executive market analyst for Kelley Blue Book's kbb.com. "While some great cars don't make the 'clunkers' cut for price or fuel economy reasons, several exciting, fun-to-drive models do. To help shoppers who are looking to upgrade in their next new-car purchase after cashing in their clunker, we crunched the numbers and then chose our top picks for the 10 Most Fun Clunker Replacements."

Sample Choices from kbb.com's 10 Most Fun Clunker Replacements List

Audi TT

BMW 128i

Hyundai Genesis Coupe

Pontiac Solstice

Volkswagen GTI

For the remaining 10 Most Fun Clunker Replacement choices, including full editorial commentary and reasoning behind each of the editors' picks, visit the 10 Most Fun Clunker Replacements story in kbb.com's Latest News section at www.kbb.com/funclunkerreplacements.

About Kelley Blue Book (www.kbb.com)

Since 1926, Kelley Blue Book, The Trusted Resource®, has provided vehicle buyers and sellers with the new and used vehicle information they need to accomplish their goals with confidence. The company's top-rated Web site, www.kbb.com, provides the most up-to-date pricing and values, including the New Car Blue Book® Value, which reveals what people actually are paying for new cars. The company also reports vehicle pricing and values via products and services, including software products and the famous Blue Book® Official Guide. According to the C.A. Walker Research Solutions, Inc. - 2008 Spring Automotive Web Site Usefulness Study, kbb.com is the most useful automotive information Web site among new and used vehicle shoppers, and half of online vehicle shoppers visit kbb.com. Kbb.com is a leading provider of new car prices, car reviews and news, used car blue book values, auto classifieds and car dealer locations. No other medium reaches more in-market vehicle shoppers than kbb.com.

SOURCE Kelley Blue Book

SOURCE: Kelley Blue Book

Web site: http://www.kbb.com/