Issue is (at least in Canada) our rates are based on years of driving, age, sex, level of market claims on a particular model, etc. Statistically speaking, younger/inexperience drivers, males under 25, etc tend to be a higher risk of claims, so they get blanket punished, unfortunately.
My buddy bought an el cheapo Suzuki SX4 (that odd tall looking AWD hatchback), and his rates were higher than my BMW 335 which cost 2x more just due to the level of claims filed on his particular car.
OP, cheaping out will typically end in you having a car that won't drive or feel right in the end. I'd suggest you just use the insurance route and do it right, but those rate increases are hard to swallow though.
