There are four main factors that go into determining insurance premiums of a particular make and model of car: suggested retail price, repair cost, safety record and likelihood of theft. For example, the Cadillac Escalade is number one on theft-loss lists, making it one of the most expensive cars to insure. It also has a sticker price of $62,000 to $86,000. The recently-released 2009 Nissan GT-R, which has no safety history yet behind it, also makes the list of cars with high insurance premiums simply because of its price, which starts at $76,840. So if you're looking to cut your insurance costs, you might want to steer away from such high-end cars.

You might also want to avoid sports cars and SUVs, since they are also pricey to insure. Why? Because insurers assume that if you buy a sports car, you're going to be driving fast, which of course would increase your risk of having an accident; SUVs, on the other hand, could inflict more damage if involved in a collision.

On the other hand, if you're looking for cars that are cheap to insure go for the larger models and minivans. One model which is cheap to ensure is the Smart fortwo. Although this two-passenger coupe, the smallest car on the market, would be easy to total in a crash, insurers took into account the fact that it is also easy to repair. The manufacturer is shipping body panels for the car already painted, so the repair shop simply has to bolt them on to the frame. What is the cheapest car to insure? The 2009 Hyundai Santa Fe, which aside from being extremely affordable with a sticker price of $21,000 also garnered good scores on federal crash tests.

Apart from considering the make and model of a car, you should also look at what safety features it has, since insurers give discounts to models with features such as air bags, electric seat-belts and a good alarm system. If you want to know which cars are affordable to insure, log on to the website of the Highway Loss Data Institute, which publishes insurance losses by car make and models.

Also, if you're buying your car through a finance company, make sure that you purchase the insurance yourself; otherwise the company may do it for you and charge you much higher rates. And look up the minimum requirements for car insurance in your state so you'll know how much you need.

But don't stint on essential coverage. For example, if you don't have enough bodily injury liability and you injure someone in an accident, the victim's attorneys to sue in court to go after your personal assets.

Keep all this information in mind when picking your new car, and you'll not only save on auto insurance rates but also have peac