Best AWD Sedans on a Budget

Choosing a sensible sedan shouldn’t constitute sacrificing all-weather capability. A preference for an affordable car with four-doors and a proper trunk doesn’t exclude the need for maximum traction.

Thankfully, automobile manufacturers have been listening. There are plenty of all-wheel drive mainstream sedans on the market, and they’re not just Subaru’s (although the company is well represented). More and more manufacturers have begun equipping sedans with AWD, and some of the brands may surprise you.

Best of all for consumers, everything from compacts to traditional full-size sedans are now available with all-wheel drive. After scouring the build sheets and specification tables, we present to you the 10 best AWD sedans on a budget.

To expand on the Toyota Camry‘s already dominate sales figures, the mid-size sedan adopted all-wheel drive for the 2020 model year. Available even in the base LE trim level, an all-wheel drive Camry starts at $27,620 USD ($34,250 CAD for SE AWD). Toyota offers AWD on any of the Camry’s four-cylinder engine trim levels, but it unfortunately cannot be included with either the hybrid powertrain or the V6. At least the four-cylinder is a strong engine generating 203 hp, paired to a an eight-speed automatic transmission.

Barley beating the Toyota Camry to market, the redesigned Nissan Altima has been available with AWD for the past three years. It too only offers all-wheel drive with the entry level engine, a 2.5-liter unit that makes 182 hp (188 hp with front-wheel drive). Unlike the Camry, the Altima cannot have all-wheel drive paired to the entry level trims in the USA, but is available with the S in Canada. In the United States, the SV AWD begins at a price of $28,685 USD ($32,985 CAD for S AWD) – a bit more than the entry level AWD Camry. In total, Nissan offers all-wheel drive on three trim levels of the Altima.

Continuing the list of mid-size sedans offering all-wheel drive is the Kia K5. All-new for the 2021 model year, it now offers all-wheel drive on just one trim level, the GT-Line. It includes a turbocharged 1.6-liter engine making 180 hp paired to an eight-speed automatic transmission. The GT-Line starts at a price of $29,515 USD, putting it right in line with higher trim AWD versions of the Toyota Camry and Nissan Altima. Surprisingly, the K5 is available with all-wheel drive while its corporate sibling, the Hyundai Sonata is not.

In Canada the Kia K5 is available with AWD in three trim levels, starting with the LX AWD priced at $32,644.

The Subaru Legacy is the ubiquitous all-wheel mid-size sedan. Having been on sale since 1989, the Legacy has always been available with AWD, and has only come that way for the past two decades. It’s the lowest price mid-size sedan to offer all-wheel drive, starting at a price of $25,415 USD ($34,845 CAD for Touring). The Subie is the only car in its class to have all-wheel drive as standard, paired to a 182 hp four-cylinder engine. If that’s not enough, unlike its competitors, the Legacy offers AWD with an upgraded engine, a 260 hp turbocharged unit in Legacy XT (GT in Canada). Both engines come paired to a continuously variable automatic transmission.

If something a little larger is desired, there is this big sedan from Dodge. The Charger may have been around since George W. Bush was in office, but the car has steadily been updated and improved. For the 2012 model year, optional all-wheel drive was added, greatly improve the all-weather capability of these large rear-wheel drive-based sedans.

It is available on the entry level Charger SXT for the starting price of $37,840 USD ($49,760 CAD). Power for the V6 engine bumps up to 300 hp when selecting all-wheel drive, which is more than enough to motivate these large four-doors. Sadly, the optional HEMI V8 is no longer available with AWD. This should be the last year for the Dodge Charger, so better hurry and get one!

On the smaller side of the sedan world there is the compact Subaru Impreza. It is the cheapest way to get all-wheel drive on a sedan, starting at a price of just $20,815 USD. Powered by a 152 HP 2.0-liter engine, the Impreza is also designed to be highly efficient for an all-wheel drive vehicle, with official fuel consumption ratings of 36 MPG city and 28 MPG highway.

Besides holding the title of most affordable AWD sedan, it is also the only vehicle (along with its WRX bigger brother) to be available with all-wheel drive paired to a manual transmission. Granted, it is an unrefined, antiquated five-speed manual in this case, but at least there is still the option for those that like to row their own gears.

Sorry Canadians, the Impreza sedan was dropped a few years, so it’s hatchback only now in the Great White North. Plus, an all-new Impreza has already been announced for 2024 that not only ditches the manual transmission, it also ditches the sedan body style for the USA as well.

If a relatively affordable all-wheel drive compact performance sedan is what is required, there’s the Subaru WRX. All-new for the 2022 model year, the WRX continues the rally-bred car’s tradition. It now features a new 2.4-liter turbocharged flat-four engine making 271 hp. It continues to be offered with either a six-speed manual transmission or a continuously variable transmission, both of which power all four wheels. Pricing for the performance sedan starts at $30,600 USD ($32,720 CAD).

Subaru is not alone in offering a compact sedan with all-wheel drive as it is now also available on the latest Mazda3. Unlike the Impreza, the Mazda3 does not offer all-wheel drive with the base engine or entry level trim package. To acquire AWD, the 2.5-liter engine is required at a starting price of $29,665 USD ($30,445 CAD). This is a more powerful 186 hp engine, and the Mazda isn’t just targeting the Impreza. The WRX is also firmly in the car’s crosshairs as the available 250 hp turbocharged engine comes standard with all-wheel drive. Sadly though, no manual transmission is available on any AWD Mazda3.

A different take on all-wheel drive compact sedans is the Toyota Corolla Hybrid AWD. As the name suggests, the Corolla is powered by a fuel-sipping 134 hp hybrid system powering the front wheels. The all-wheel drive part comes from Toyota calls e-AWD. It utilizes a 30 kW electric motor on the rear wheels to help provide additional grip when the front wheels slip at low speeds.

Although it is not a true AWD set-up, it still offers the same benefits when driving in slippery conditions around town. It’s also the most fuel efficient all-wheel drive sedan currently on sale as well. Pricing for the Corolla Hybrid AWD starts at $25,295 UDS ($29,310 CAD).

The Chrysler 300 is a close relative of the Dodge Charger, offering much of the same details as the big Dodge, but in a classier looking package. All-wheel drive is available with the entry level six-cylinder engine models, the Touring and Touring L. The 300S and reborn 300C remain rear-wheel drive only. So, shoppers looking for AWD 300 need to stick with the lower equipped models.

Pricing for the Touring AWD starts at $37,890 USD ($52,140 CAD), a mere $50 USD more than the most affordable AWD Charger. Like it’s Dodge sibling, this should be the final year of the Chrysler 300.