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N
issan offered its entry-level sedan 2009 Versa for less than $10,000, and it will be the cheapest new car available in the United States. The new Versa is made in Mexico. It will cost about $3,000 less than the current cheapest Versa.


The no-frills Versa, which will not include air-conditioning or power windows, will cost $9,900 or about $1,000 less than the country's current least expensive car.

The 2008 Hyundai (10,775) and 2008 Kia Rio ($10,890) are currently the two least inexpensive cars in the United States. The Smart ForTwo, available in the U.S. for the first time in 2008, has a base price of $11,590.

"A sticker price under $10,000 is certainly appealing to customers in an economy where people don't have money anymore," Robyn Eckard of Kelley Blue Book said in a recent interview in the Los Angles Times about the new batch of inexpensive cars available in the United States.

Globally, nine cars are currently available for substantially less than $10,000. Tata Motors in India is planning to soon sell the Nano, a $2,500 car, and it will be the world's cheapest new car.

The new Versa will have a 1.6-liter engine, rather than the 1.8 liter offered on the current Versa. It will get an estimated 34 mpg on the highway, compared with 33 mpg currently.

According to Forbes.com, the 10 cheapest current or soon-to-be offered cars in the world:

1. Tata Nano, $2,000


2. Chery QQ, $4,781


3. Suzuki Maruti 800, $4,994


4. Geely MR, $5,500


5. Geely HQ, SRO, $5,780


6. Chery A1, $7,394


7. Tata Indica, $8,894


8. Hyundai 110, $9,096


9. Fiat Palio, $9,242


10. Renault Logan $9,477