Q: "What kind of car is going to cost me the most in auto insurance? Which is the cheapest to insure?" ----- A: Those are interesting questions. Depending on your choice of car, on average the total insurance premium that you will pony up ranges from a "low" of $ 4,155 to a high of $ 10,440 over a five year period.

Let's take a closer look at this question. Insurance.com has broken up a galaxy of cars into five basic groups: Passenger Cars, Vans/Wagons, Crossovers/SUVs, Sports Cars, and Trucks. Each of these very large groups are then broken into three sub-groups: Large, Midsize and Small.

The following table details the most and least expensive annual premiums in each group:

Group Highest Premiums Cheapest Premiums

Lg. Crossover/SUV: Mercedes-Benz G-Class $2,088 Hyundai Veracruz $977

Midsize Crossover/SUV: Infiniti EX $1,306 Hyundai Santa Fe $832

Small Crossover/SUV: Mazda Tribute Hybrid $ 1,372 Kia Sportage $840

Lrg. Passenger: Audi S8 $2,071 Pontiac Grand Prix $902

Midsize Passenger: Audi S6 $1,571 Subaru Legacy $962

Small Passenger: Volkswagen Eos $1,198 Kia Rio5 $870

Small Sports Car: Dodge Viper convertible $2,580 Mazda MX-5 Miata $1,017

Lrg. Truck: Cadillac Escalade EXT $1,592 GMC Sierra2500HD $1,013

Midsize Truck: Dodge Dakota $1,279 Ford Expl Sport Trac $1,070

Small Truck: Chevrolet Colorado $1,147 Mazda Truck $957

Lrg. Van/Wagon: BMW 5-Series Sports Wagon $1,153 Chevy Uplander $831

After all the numbers and risk algorithms are crunched, it's probably no surprise that the giant Mercedes-Benz G-Class SUV will set you back an amazing $ 2,088 each year. Similarly, if your tastes run to fast sports cars, get ready to hand over $ 2,580 a year for a Dodge Viper convertible policy.

Audi, surprisingly, will set you back the greatest amount each year in both the large and midsize passenger car categories. The popular Cadillac Escalade EXT, categorized as a truck in this survey, seems almost modestly priced at $ 1,592 per year.

The real bargains of the year come in the large Van/Wagon category. You can drive a new BMW 5-Series Sports Wagon out of the dealer parking lot for a very reasonable $ 1,153. Finally, the cheap car insurance award for the year 2009 goes to the Chevrolet Uplander. At $ 831 per year, the Uplander comes in a full $1,257.00 cheaper every year than the most expensive Mercedes-Benz G-Class SUV.

Posted under Cars