Finding the right car for you on The Vehicle For Me

A couple years ago when shopping for a new car, I found myself trying to come to grips with the different options available to me, and I wanted some sort of empirical way to grade each car in a way that was important to me.  At the time, there were "Decision Guide" websites that let you use filters to come up with a handful of cars that fit your needs, but then you were on your own to weigh the pros and cons of each.  So at the time, I made myself a spreadsheet, listed the specs for each car I was interested in, and created a weighted formula.  Each spec was given a weight and I was able to come up with a concrete value for each car based on my priorities, which were front legroom (I'm tall), cargo space, and highway MPG.  I came up with the 2012 Hyundai Accent Hatchback as my top choice, but funnily enough decided on the 2012 Honda Fit instead (I ended up not liking the rear visibility in the Accent).

Cue to this year, I decided that I wanted to give other people the benefits of my spreadsheet formulas without all the muss and fuss.  The result is the The Vehicle For Me!

Front Page

Above, you will see the front page, which provides a simple jumping-off point to start looking at automobiles.  There is also a simple "Highlights" area that shows some interesting info from my database of car info.

So let's say you are looking for a nice little hatchback like I was.  You will want to select the "Passenger Car" segment, and the "Hatchback" body style.  Then click "Let's Go".

Filter Your Choices

On the Filter Your Choices page you can use the links on the left to filter down to exactly the specs and features you are interested in.  Then click the "Compare" button next to the trim(s) you want to compare.  Once you're done, click the "Priorities" button.

Set Your Priorities

On the Set Your Priorities page you say what is important to you.  For me, I've set Cargo Space, Front Legroom, and (below the visible area) Highway MPG.  You can set up your own priorities.  Once done, click on the "Compare" button.

Get The Results

Finally, you're ready to see your results!   Each car gets a certain number of points based on their specs and your priorities, and the percentage is what each car got out of the maximum possible points.  Based on the three cars I'm comparing, the 2013 Ford Fiesta wins by a fair margin.  This is because it had the best cargo space and highway mpg, and came in second in front legroom (though the Kia is spectacular in that category).  You can change your priorities on this page, and see the highlighted rows in the left-most column which priorities are selected.

Once you've seen your results, you are welcome to go back and experiment with other vehicles and priorities and see what the system comes up with!