In a survey that quoted 1,500 new vehicles with six major insurance companies in every state, the 2015 Sport was found to be the cheapest to insure. Its average annual premium was less than a third of the most expensive insurance case; the 2015 Nismo.

"Insurance rates are all about claims- how many and how big," says Penny Gusner, consumer analyst at which commissions this survey every year. "Cars that are cheapest to insure typically are easy to repair or have fewer claims or both."

Matt Moore of the Highway Loss Data Institute adds; "Collision and comprehensive insurance (premiums) are to a large extent driven by the cost of a vehicle."

You might have worked that out on your own, but the list of factors that affect a vehicle's insurance rate also includes how many miles it's driven, safety features (both collision protection and avoidance), and "the overall risk profile of the people who buy it" according to Insure.com's Jerry Kronenberg.

Edmunds.com's Scott Oldham speculates that's why so many family cars get cheap insurance rates. "Many of these vehicles have children in them a lot of the time, so their owners drive accordingly."

Where a car's registered also affects its rate, to a shockingly extreme degree. A Chevrolet Traverse LT 2WD was quoted at $2,290 in annual insurance in Michigan, but just $766 in Maine for the same driver. That vehicle's national average was $1,282.

So apparently the 2015 Jeep Wrangler fits in the ideal position of being cheap to buy, simple to work on, and typically sold to folks who don't get in too many accidents. Of course the Wrangler gets expensive quickly when you move up in models, which is why only the base Sport made this list.

Here are the top ten cheapest, and top ten most expensive cars to insure in America along with their average premiums, according to Insure.com's survey:

Jeep Wrangler Sport 4WD – $1,134Jeep Patriot Sport 2WD – $1,136Honda CR-V LX 4WD – $1,160Dodge Grand Caravan SE Plus – $1,162Honda Odyssey LX – $1,163Jeep Compass Sport 2WD – $1,164Subaru Outback 2.5i – $1,176Ford Edge SE 2WD – $1,176Smart FORTWO Pure – $1,186Ford Escape S 2WD – $1,190

Nissan GT-R Nismo – $3,574Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Convertible – $3,573Dodge SRT Viper – $3,318Porsche 911 Carrera S Cabriolet – $3,216Audi R8 5.2 Spyder Quattro – $3,206Porsche Panamera Turbo Executive – $3,174BMW 760Li – $3,147BMW M6 Convertible – $3,115Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG 4Matic Wagon – $3,042Mercedes-Benz CLS63 AMG 4Matic Sedan – $2,972

Quadrant Information Services calculated average auto insurance rates for 2015 models from Allstate, Farmers, GEICO, Nationwide, Progressive and State Farm in 10 ZIP codes per state. 1,522 vehicles were quoted and exotic cars were excluded.

Least expensive rankings were based on the best-performing trim line of each model. Most expensive rankings were determined by the worst-performing trim line of each model.

Averages are based on full coverage for a single 40-year-old male with a clean driving record and good credit. Policy prices assumed a 12 mile daily commute to work, policy limits of 100/300/50 ($100,000 for injury liability for one person, $300,000 for all injuries and $50,000 for property damage in an accident), a $500 deductible on collision and comprehensive coverage, and uninsured motorist coverage.

Image via Jeep

Andrew P. Collins is Jalopnik's off-road and adventure guy. Shoot him an email at or hit him up on Twitter to talk trucks.