The Least Expensive and Most Expensive Cars to Insure in 2011:

A lot of things determine how much your car insurance costs, including your age, your driving record, where you live, and your credit report. But the one way you can control your rate is to make sure you're driving a car you can afford to insure.


The website Insure just released its annual list of the cheapest and most expensive cars to insure. Here's what it said.


#1.) Minivans Are the Cheapest to Insure. The four cheapest cars on the list are all minivans, including the Chrysler Town and Country, the Toyota Sienna, the Sienna LE, and the Honda Odyssey LX.

--On average, insuring each of them costs right around $1,100 a year for someone with a good driving record.


#2.) SUVs Are the Second-Cheapest. In fact, all of the top ten cheapest cars to insure are either minivans or SUVs. And all of the SUVs cost between $1,100 and $1,200 a year, on average.


#3.) Most of the Best-Selling Cars Are Also Cheap to Insure. The number one best-selling car in 2010 was the Ford F-150 pickup truck, which carries a $1,500 annual premium. But that's higher than its competition:

--The Toyota Camry . . . which was the third most-popular car in 2010 . . . costs $1,275 a year to insure, the average driver of a new Nissan Altima pays $1,370, and the Honda CR-V costs $1,155.

#4.) The Most Expensive Cars to Insure Are Probably Out of Your Price Range Anyway. All of the cars in the top 20 are made by Mercedes, BMW, Aston Martin, Porsche, and Jaguar.

--But the Mercedes SL65 AMG took the top spot. It goes from zero to sixty in 4.2 seconds . . . and the insurance costs $3,600 a year. That's if you're a GOOD driver, with no tickets or accidents on your record.

--But of course, if you can afford to buy a Mercedes SL65, you're probably not that worried about your insurance rate. The recommended retail price is just a shade under $200,000.