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NEW YORK — Forbes.com recently published a list of what it considers to be the most affordable 2010 luxury vehicles, and taking the top spot was the Volvo C70 T5, which was estimated to have a five-year ownership cost of $51,140.

Volvo led the way with three units making the list — S80 T6 at No. 7, XC70 T6 at No. 8. Meanwhile, there were two Lexus models on the list — the RX 450h in second and the IS 250c in third — and Lincoln claimed two spots as well (MKS at No. 5, MKX at No. 6).

The Cadillac CTS (fourth), Buick Enclave CXL (No. 9) and Audi TT 2.0T (No. 10) rounded out the rankings.

Forbes.com officials said they compiled the list of vehicles — all of which had to have base price of $35,000 or more — by examining five-year ownership costs, which were calculated by Vincentric data. In choosing the vehicles, Forbes.com considered fuel costs, maintenance, repairs, average national insurance rates, depreciation, interest, opportunity costs and taxes.

The following is the top 10 most affordable luxury units for 2010 models, as provided by Forbes.com:

1. Volvo C70 T5

MSRP: $40,000

Five-Year Total Cost of Ownership: $51,140

2. Lexus RX 450h 

MSRP: $42,685

Five-Year Total Cost of Ownership: $56,786

3. Lexus IS 250c 

MSRP: $40,610

Five-Year Total Cost of Ownership: $57,569

4. Cadillac CTS

MSRP: $35,165

Five-Year Total Cost of Ownership: $57,640

5. Lincoln MKS

MSRP: $40,870

Five-Year Total Cost of Ownership: $57,675

6. Lincoln MKX 

MSRP: $38,345

Five-Year Total Cost of Ownership: $57,721

7. Volvo S80 T6

MSRP: $42,950

Five-Year Total Cost of Ownership: $58,092

8.  Volvo XC70 T6

MSRP: $42,800

Five-Year Total Cost of Ownership: $58,271

9. Buick Enclave CXL

MSRP: $35,515

Five-Year Total Cost of Ownership: $58,431

10. Audi TT 2.0T 

MSRP: $40,800

Five-Year Total Cost of Ownership: $59,842

Explaining the list in further detail, the site said it used Vincentric analysts' forecasts to estimate what these costs would be over the next five years, but a few assumptions are made.

The vehicles are each assumed to be driven 15,000 miles per year. The data is also based on fuel costs being $2.60 per gallon for regular fuel.

For premium fuel, it assumes a price of $2.86 per gallon and for diesel it is based on a cost of $2.75 per gallon. There is also inflation rate for the fuel prices built in.