10 Least Expensive Cars With a Blind-Spot Warning

2020 Kia Soul EV X Line GT Line Front ・ Photo by Kia

If you have driven for any length of time, you have undoubtedly been about to change lanes when — perhaps at the last second — you realize there is a car almost immediately next to you that is hiding in your “blind spot.” Collisions caused by blind spots are very common. Properly adjusting your side-mounted rearview mirrors can help, but an even better solution is the blind-spot monitor and warning.

Systems like these have cameras and/or sensors that can literally see where you can’t see. As part of their warning functions, they typically illuminate lights on or near your car’s exterior mirrors to signal that the lane immediately to your right or left is filled. Should you make a move in that direction — either by using your turn signal or with a steering wheel movement — the systems will emit audible warnings that you are about to make a costly misstep. Once the province of luxury cars, blind-spot warning systems can now be had in many less expensive vehicles. Here are the least expensive cars with a blind-spot warning.

2020 Nissan Versa

The new 2020 Nissan Versa subcompact sedan is meant to compete against the least expensive new cars in the marketplace. One area where it hopes to gain an advantage is safety. The highly advertised Nissan Safety Shield 360 array of driver-assistance technologies isn’t standard equipment on the Versa as it is on many Nissan products, but it is available.

Safety Shield 360 includes a blind-spot warning with a rear cross-traffic alert, along with forward automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, rear automatic braking, a lane-departure warning, and automatic high beams. On the options list are Intelligent Driver Alertness and adaptive cruise control. The most robust list of safety equipment is available on the SV and SR trim levels. With this equipment, the Versa provides the most comprehensive front, side, and rear safety monitoring and intervention technologies of any subcompact available in America.

Photo by Nissan

2020 Nissan Sentra

Like the Nissan Versa, the Nissan Sentra compact is newly redesigned for the 2020 model year. It offers Nissan Safety Shield 360 as standard equipment. This includes all the systems mentioned earlier in connection with the Versa: a blind-spot warning and rear cross-traffic alert, plus forward automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, rear automatic braking, a lane-departure warning, and automatic high beams.  

Meanwhile, adaptive cruise control is standard equipment on the mid-level SV and the top-level SR trims. The system controls the Sentra’s acceleration and deceleration to maintain a preset distance between it and the vehicle preceding it. If the vehicle in front of the Sentra comes to a stop, the Sentra will also come to a standstill within the limitations of the system.

Photo by Nissan

2020 Toyota Corolla

The Toyota Corolla is one of the most highly regarded small cars of all time. A global favorite, it can be equipped with one of two highly regarded four-cylinder engines: a 1.8-liter offering 139 horsepower or a 2.0-liter offering 169 horsepower. A gas-electric hybrid version is available as well.

All 2020 Corollas sold in the U.S. are equipped with Toyota Safety Sense, a comprehensive group of electronic safety aids. Included are a pre-collision system with pedestrian detection, a lane-departure alert with steering corrections, automatic high beams, and full-range adaptive cruise control. However, a blind-spot warning is not part of the Corolla’s Toyota Safety Sense equipment. Instead, it's optional on the Corolla's LE and SE trim levels and standard only on the pricier XLE and XSE models. 

Photo by Toyota

2020 Honda Fit

While most subcompacts are not what you’d call a blast to drive, the Honda Fit offers more driving enjoyment than you have any right to expect. One reason for that is its relatively light weight combined with a reasonably powerful (for a subcompact) engine. Its 1.5-liter direct-injected four-cylinder engine produces 130 horsepower.

While a six-speed manual transmission is offered on the lower trim levels, if you’d like the benefits of the Honda Sensing array of safety equipment, you have to opt for the EX and EX-L. Those upper trim levels are also equipped with Honda’s LaneWatch system, a different take on blind-spot monitoring. LaneWatch uses cameras to see what the driver can’t see with his or her naked eyes. It projects a video rendition of the blind spot to the car’s infotainment screen when the turn signal is activated, though only on the passenger's side of the vehicle. 

Photo by Honda

2020 Hyundai Elantra

The Hyundai Elantra compact sedan competes with the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla in one of the hottest segments in the car market. For 2020, the Elantra is equipped with a new Intelligent Variable Transmission — a continuously variable transmission that offers better fuel economy than before.

Also for 2020, Hyundai's Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist has been added to all Elantras as standard equipment. The technology includes both a forward-collision warning and automatic emergency braking. A blind-spot warning isn't available on the base SE model, though it's standard on all pricier Elantra sedans. The system is equipped with sensors that track vehicles as they approach you from behind you on each side. If you decide to change lanes, the technology is designed to warn you of any other vehicles in your path.

Photo by Hyundai

2020 Mazda Mazda3

The Mazda3 has gained a great deal of attention for its good looks and interior style. And the car’s sharp handling and responsive acceleration have quickly made it one of the favorite models of professional vehicle evaluators. It’s available as a compact four-door sedan or five-door hatchback, and all 2020 Mazda3s have a 186-horsepower Skyactiv-G 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine that is backed by a six-speed conventional automatic instead of the nearly ubiquitous continuously variable transmission.

On the safety and driver-assistance front, blind-spot monitoring is standard across the lineup Mazda3 lineup. Other standard features include a Driver Attention Alert, Smart Brake Support, a lane-departure warning with lane-keep assist, automatic high beams, and adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go capability. 

Photo by Mazda

2020 Subaru Impreza

With all-wheel-drive extending almost across the entire product line, Subaru has built a strong safety reputation. The 2020 Impreza, available as a four-door sedan and five-door hatchback, holds up its end. All Impreza models with the Lineartronic continuously variable automatic transmission come with Subaru’s EyeSight driver-assistance technology.

Included are automatic emergency braking with throttle management, lane-departure and sway warnings with lane-keep assist, and a vehicle start alert that chimes if the car in front of you drives away and you stay still. A blind-spot warning isn’t part of EyeSight, but it's part of an available option package on the Premium trim level along with a rear cross-traffic alert, keyless entry with push-button starting, a power moonroof, and a six-way power driver’s seat. New for 2020 is the available Rear Seat Reminder, which alerts the driver to check the rear seat for a child or pet before leaving the car.

Photo by Subaru

2020 Kia Soul

The Kia Soul is an amazingly versatile vehicle with a curb presence all its own. For 2020, the compact hatchback has gone through a complete generational change but still hangs on to the inimitable style that first captured attention several years ago.

No matter what kind of powertrain you want, the Soul can accommodate. Naturally aspirated and turbocharged engines are available, and a battery-electric version is coming as well. The Soul offers the practical and the frivolous with plenty of interior space, available wireless phone charging, and dual automatic climate control — plus available sound mood lighting that can synchronize to the beat of the music. The Soul provides a blind-spot warning on most of its trim levels as standard equipment. Kia’s Drive Wise safety equipment also includes automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, lane-keep assist, a driver attention warning, a rear cross-traffic alert, smart cruise control, and a head-up display. 

Photo by Kia

2020 Mazda Mazda6

We have to admit that the Mazda6 is one of our favorite mid-size sedans. We like the way it looks, the way it drives, and the way it offers robust safety technology. Called i-ACTIVSENSE, the safety technologies include a blind-spot warning with a rear cross-traffic alert, a sophisticated system that monitors traffic and warns of a potential collision.

This system is accompanied by automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, a lane-departure warning with lane-keep assist, smart brake support, and automatic high beams. Also on the list is radar cruise control with the convenient stop-and-go-function. The Mazda6 will maintain its interval in free-flowing traffic, bring itself to a complete stop when traffic requires it to, and then resume speed without driver intervention.

Photo by Mazda

2020 Nissan Altima

The popular Nissan Altima mid-size sedan brings with it a laudable array of safety and driver-assistance technologies. One advanced system is ProPILOT Assist, which uses a forward-facing camera, forward-facing radar, sensors, and an electronic control module to serve and protect. It eases the driver’s workload by reducing the amount of driver-initiated acceleration, steering, and braking inputs required under a variety of driving conditions.

Another system of technologies is Safety Shield 360, which helps provide front, side, and rear safety monitoring and intervention. It includes automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, rear automatic Braking, a lane-departure warning, a radar-based blind-spot warning, a rear cross-traffic alert, and automatic high beams. Safety Shield 360 is standard for the Altima SR or available as part of the Driver Assist Package for the Altima S.

Photo by Nissan