How do I become familiar with car brands and what features to look for in a car when buying?

Well I'm 20 years old never owned a car but i'm going to be working full time and still haven't decided if I will buy, lease or finance a car. What confuses me is that there are just so many brands and options out there. How do you choose and how do you know what you want in a car? I'm familiar with the obvious brands like ford and toyota. I know what a sedan and hatchback is. But that's all I know to cars. When I buy a car I don't want to make a mistake. Thanks!

Added (1). Is there some kind of car index you can look through that shows you the different brands and information about the car?

Good brands: toyota, honda, acura, lexus, and a 1998 or older volvo.

Ok brands: Chevy, GMC, Subaru, 1999 or newer Volvo, nissan, Mitsubishi, Volkswagen

Bad brands: Kia, Chrysler, dodge, Jeep pontiac, saturn

Terrible brands: Ford, Mercedes, Bmw, Audi.

Features to avoid: Push start ignition systems, Electronic parking brake, Electronic gear shifter, auto aiming headlights, Factory LED headlights.

Types of cars to avoid: Used sports cars, used luxury cars, used cars with over 100,000 miles.

Things to avoid: Buying a car from a woman,(they often abuse their cars because they don't know any better) buying a car that has weird sounds, buying a car that you didn't test drive.

If your looking for a cheap, reliable, good gas milege, point a to point b car, i sugest an older Toyota Corolla.

If your looking for a more sporty car, i recommend a honda civic.

Edmunds.com is an excellent web site for learning about car brands, prices, test results, and much more. ConsumerReports.com is another. And there are many more if you'll do a search for them.

Read and educate yourself.

Consumer reports has info

Watch and listen to the Street

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