By Mary Kate Williams, Resident Car Chick

In the age of raising gas prices, our independence and egos rely heavily on the cars we drive.  Teenagers need something cool (and not too pricey) to call their own.  The new 2013 Rio LX is jam-packed with goodies to keep yourself happy and impress your friends. These include AM/FM radio, in dash CD player, Sirius XM radio (three month free trial), auxiliary audio input and iPod integration, and USB connection to name just a few.   The Rio comes in sturdy cloth so you won’t burn your toosh as you sit down after a hot sunny day like you would with leather. All the features are wrapped up in a simple yet defined body with a pretty wicked grill.

While the interior and exterior are pretty cool, what’s deep inside the car is what really matters — and it’s the best part.  The Rio has an estimated 40mpg (highway) to get you from here to there without digging into teen’s already shallow wallets.  The Rio is powered by 138-horsepower, 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine.  It has front wheel drive, direct-injection technology and a six-speed automatic transmission, which helps with the ease of driving.

Putting the Rio up against competitors like the 2013 Ford Fiesta S and 2013 Chevy Spark LS, of all three, the Rio has a slight edge in Highway MPG at 40 (Fiesta 39; Spark 37 highway, according to Yahoo Autos). Spark and Fiesta had more color choices to spice things up, so it was a tricky decision at times.

The Rio has to attract young drivers, but the older ones need to approve of it as well. With that said, the Rio earns 4 stars in an overall safety rating according to USNews.com and a 7.5 crash test rating from CarConnection.com. Kia has a good track record with safety; the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety gave the 2012 model its highest rating. With front and rear head airbags, dual front-side mounted airbags, traction and stability control, and the ever popular 4-wheel ABS, the Rio LX is a safe car to cruise down the road with friends.

Pop all that into a subcompact body, with smooth defined edges, and you get quite the bang for your buck with the Rio, coming in at just $13,200. The low price tag will help teens’ and parents’ wallets. The safety features reassure parents and the total package makes this a car for the teen’s ego. Kia has come a long way and, with this new installment of the Rio LX, will push sales up with cool features catching the eyes of young teen drivers everywhere. Watch out, a teen’s first car maybe cooler then we think.