If a small car will do, ie you don't need a lot of storage or hauling capability, it is hard to beat the Toyota Corolla. One of the best selling cars for decades and always top review for reliability etc. in the April issue of Consumer Reports each year. I have found Toyota's to be dependable, very cheap to own and maintain (never any major maintenance), quite luxurious now, and we got 40+ mpg on our 2015 S model on a recent road trip! We got our new one loaded for less than 18k USD.
I also like the Subaru Outback especially if you ever envision driving on snow or ice as it has probably the best AWD system out there. Plus I love that it is a hatchback style. Also great reviews on CR but more expensive than the Corolla (mid twenties for base model) and mid twenties at best on mpg.