Consumer Guide® Automotive places each vehicle into one of 17 classes based on size, price, and market position. Compact Cars comprise the smallest passengers cars. These vehicles range from tiny economy models to slightly larger, popularly priced sedans, hatchbacks, and wagons.

Our Best Buys include Chrysler PT Cruiser, Honda Civic, Mazda 3, and Pontiac Vibe/Toyota Matrix twins. Our Recommended picks include Chevrolet Cobalt, Ford Focus, Hyundai Elantra, Kia Spectra, and Toyota Corolla.

New or significantly redesigned models include Chevrolet HHR, Hyundai Accent, Kia Rio, and Volkswagen Golf and Jetta.

Insight won't be back after model-year 2006. Introduced in 1999 as the first hybrid-power car in the U.S. market, the small two-seater was never meant to be a high-volume seller, but demand has been miniscule the past several seasons, hence Honda's decision to drop it.

Meantime, Honda has announced a new "dedicated" hybrid model for a 2009 debut. The company says the vehicle will be designed solely for gas/electric power, not an adaptation of an existing model, and will be smaller and less expensive than today's Civic Hybrid. The apparent target is Toyota's uniquely styled Prius. Stay tuned.