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Spring is finally here.  Birds are chirping, flowers are in bloom, and thousands of new college grads are anxiously waiting to throw their hats in the air.

Here at Honk HQ, we decided to get ready for commencement day by heading to the library and researching the most popular cars for new grads.

Our final paper is full of coupes, sedans, and hatchbacks with plenty of personality.  Compared to previous years, however, you may notice that this list of top cars for the Class of 2010 comes up short on pickup trucks and SUVs.

Given their general sensitivity to the environment and the sky-high fuel prices this class experienced at the end of their Sophomore year, the shift to smaller and more fuel efficient cars makes a lot of sense.  Who wants to spend hard-earned cash on a gas guzzler when there are expensive student loans to pay off?

What you’ll find in place of off-roading gear is technology – and lots of it.  Gadgets and software are a way of life for these members of the Echo Boom generation and it shows in their vehicle choices.

The winning Mazda 3 on this year’s list can be had with a Bluetooth hands-free phone system, satellite-based navigation system, keyless engine start, rain-sensing windshield wipers, automatic climate control, and high-intensity discharge headlights that can swivel to illuminate corners at night.  These kinds of features used to be reserved for mom’s Mercedes, not fuel-sipping junior sports sedans.

So finish cleaning out your dorm room and take a look at Honk’s 21 Best Cars for College Grads:

1. Mazda 3

2. Nissan Altima Coupe

3. Honda Civic



4. Scion tC

5. Toyota Corolla

6. Subaru Impreza

7. Ford Focus

8. Mitsubishi Lancer

9. Volkswagen GTI

10. Ford Mustang

11. Honda Accord Coupe

12. Chevrolet Cobalt

13. Scion xD

14. Jeep Liberty

15. Volkswagen Jetta

16.Lexus IS250/350/F

17. Hyundai Elantra

18. Mini Cooper

19. Toyota RAV4

20. BMW 1-Series Coupe

21. Nissan Cube

We’ve got some pretty awesome neighbors here at Honk HQ in San Francisco.  MySpace, Photobucket, and IGN have offices just down the hall and we’re within walking distance to the folks at Current, Wired Magazine, and Twitter.  As a shout-out to our tech-savvy neighbors, we decided to research the Top 33 cars for gadget lovers and technophiles.

We dug into the Honk database to search for car buyers who placed a lot of weight on technical innovations and high-quality infotainment systems when they chose their rides.

The list is full of hybrid-electric vehicles like the Toyota Prius and Ford Escape Hybrid, no doubt due to their advanced fuel-sipping powertrains.  Other vehicles that scored well, like the Lincoln MKS and Acura TL, are known for their exceptionally crisp audio systems.

Several family haulers made the list thanks to their kid-friendly DVD systems, auxiliary inputs for video game systems, and power doors.

High-end luxury vehicles on the list impressed with their state-of-the-art active safety features.  The BMW 7-Series, for example, offers an infrared night vision system that can detect and track pedestrians near the roadway.  And the Infiniti FX offers an Intelligent Brake Assist function that can automatically sound a warning and then apply the brakes if a collision becomes unavoidable.

Today’s cars are undoubtedly high-tech and they are getting better and better with each new model year.  Electronic stability control, a life-saving feature that prevents cars from sliding out of control, will become mandatory for all new cars in 2012.  Mobile phone integration continues to advance, too, with audio streams that can be played over the car’s speakers via Bluetooth.

If you’re a gadget-lover, check out these Top 33 Cars for Techies:

1. Acura TL

2. Toyota Camry Hybrid

3. Toyota Prius

4. Lincoln MKS

5. Acura TSX

6. Honda Insight

7. Honda Civic Hybrid

8. BMW X5

9. Volkswagen Jetta

10. Ford Fusion

11. Subaru Forester

12. Mercedes GLK

13. Acura MDX

14. Infiniti FX

15. Mercedes C-Class

16. Nissan Maxima

17. Infiniti EX

18. Volkswagen Eos

19. Toyota Highlander Hybrid

20. Chrysler Town & Country

21. Mazda 6

22. Ford F-150

23. Toyota Sienna

24. Nissan Altima Hybrid

25. Volkswagen Tiguan

26. Acura RDX

27. Ford Flex

28. Mercedes ML

29. Hyundai Genesis Sedan

30. BMW 7-Series

31. Ford Escape Hybrid

32. Audi A4

33. Honda CR-V

Which cars do dad’s, both young and old, find most attractive?  Some of the answers may surprise you a bit.  Get this one… the Nissan Cube is #3 on the Honk list.  And while many people think this car is unsightly, it’s easy to recognize that polarizing cars mean some people will actually love it.  It’s a statement car for sure.  Since this list is based on people who actually purchased the cars, it is really based on buyers of their cars and how much more do they love the design than others (we index off a baseline and then take the most beloved and rank them).  So while you may not love the Cube, it is certainly ADORED by those who own them.  The results came from over 5,000 Dads!

Side note: We have some incredible data over at Honk that enables us to take a peek at answers to very specific questions from our users.  All of our lists are based on actual consumer input and is not conjured up by a bunch of gear heads on a computer.  We are committed to enhancing our user experience by blending interesting data with tools.  Go ahead and take a look.  If there’s a burning question  or a fun list you’d like us to pull, we’d be happy to give it a shot!  In the near future, we will be actively posting these lists and they will dynamically be part of our search tool (launching in February).

The Top 33 Best Looking Cars for Dads

1            Porsche 911

2            BMW M3

3            Nissan Cube

4            Audi A5/S5

5            Land Rover Range Rover

6            Saturn Sky Roadster

7            Hyundai Genesis

8            Volkswagen CC

9            BMW 6 Series

10            Mercedes S-Class

11            Audi R8

12            Jaguar XF

13            Audi TT

14            Audi A4/S4

15            Chevrolet Camaro

16            Audi Q7

17            Audi A6/S6

18            Infiniti QX56

19            Audi A3 Avant

20            BMW 3 Series

21            Lexus LS460

22            Chevrolet Corvette

23            Infiniti FX35

24            Mini Cooper

25            Audi Q5

26            Cadillac CTS

27            Mercedes SL Roadster

28            Chevrolet Avalanche

29            Dodge Challenger

30            Nissan Maxima

31            Mini Cooper Clubman

32            Cadillac Escalade

33            Chevrolet Suburban