KWWL.com - News & Weather for Waterloo, Dubuque, Cedar Rapids & Iowa City, Iowa | Audi and Kia named most affordable car brands to own

Buying a car, either new or used, is only part of the total cost of ownership. Once the deal is signed, buyers still need to factor in the cost of insurance, fuel, maintenance and, in some cases, even depreciation.

An inexpensive car can prove to be anything but, and sometimes paying a bit extra for a different model can save you money in the long run. Kelley Blue Book's (KBB) latest study, on total cost of new vehicle ownership, has named Kia as the most affordable brand and Audi as the most affordable luxury brand.

The win for Kia comes as no surprise, since its vehicles have a low purchase price (compared to competitive vehicles) and tend to return good fuel economy. In the luxury brand category, Audi won for its strong resale value and superior fuel economy.

Audi's A5 also took top honors in the luxury car category, as it returned the best five-year total cost of ownership (by nearly $5,000) compared to others in the segment. The A5 was helped by both high residual value and the lowest insurance cost in its class.

In other individual car categories, the Kia Soul proved to be the least-expensive compact car, the Hyundai Sonata won for the midsize class and the Lexus LS 460 took top honors in the high-end luxury category.

The most affordable sports car is the Mazda MX-5 Miata, while the Lexus IS-F grabs the top spot in the high-performance category. Honda's Insight is the least-expensive hybrid, while the Chevy Volt is the least expensive electric car.

Want a complete list of this year's winners? You'll find it on KBB's Total Cost Of Ownership Awards page.