Narrowing the list of the year’s best automobiles is a tough business. With carmakers cranking out updated models on quicker cycles, and into increasingly diverse and competitive segments, drivers have a growing list of great options.
This 10-best list for 2014 is a testament to that cutthroat competition, with winners from every major car-making country — Germany, Japan, South Korea and the U.S. — and across a wide spectrum of segments and price ranges.
A word of explanation on eligibility: With the widening disconnect between model years and calendar years, we defined “year” to include both. So our list features the Mazda3 (a 2014 model introduced late in 2013), along with the Volkswagen Golf (a 2015 model introduced early in 2014). All are new or redesigned vehicles.
Here are the winners:
♦ Dodge Challenger/Charger Hellcat: As smooth and comfortable around town as it was ferocious on the open highway. And it was remarkably tunable — giving the driver, for instance, a choice of 300, 500 or 700 horsepower through the touch of a dashboard screen.
♦ Volkswagen Golf: With classic styling and hatchback utility, VW’s new Golf comes in every possible variety — gas turbo; diesel turbo; performance turbo; battery electric, with plans for a hydrogen fuel cell version.
♦ Ford Mustang: Sultry styling; independent rear suspension; interior refinement and the availability of blind-spot monitoring, adaptive cruise control and forward collision warning; new four-cylinder turbocharged engine.
♦ BMW 320i and M3: The 320i coaxes 180 horsepower and 200 pound-feet of torque from a smooth little turbocharged four-cylinder. With the M3 you get a sublime six-speed manual gearbox and 425 turbocharged horsepower — and world-beating handling with four-door practicality.
♦ Subaru’s Legacy and Outback: Proven reliability and heartiness, now with added fuel efficiency and styling. An extra layer of safety is offered for just $1,200, for an option package of blind-spot monitoring, adaptive cruise control, pre-collision braking and lane-departure warning.
♦ Mazda3: Its handling and steering are top of class. Fuel economy is excellent — 34 mpg in combined driving and 41 on the highway.
♦ Mercedes-Benz C-Class: Elegant, refined, vibrant — the new Mercedes-Benz C-Class is all one expects of a luxury sports sedan, and may be the best-driving small sedan Mercedes has ever produced.
♦ Chevrolet Colorado: The six-cylinder versions drive well and have enough power for most tasks. The cabins are quiet and well-appointed. These trucks avoid the body roll common in trucks and crossovers. They’re easy to park. And they get more than 20 mpg.
♦ Kia Soul: Both the gasoline version and the electric-only model are equally good.
♦ Porsche 911 Turbo S: the $182,095 Turbo S is packed with nearly every piece of high-tech weaponry Porsche makes. It’s impressive enough in a straight line — 0 to 60 mph in less than three seconds — but mind-blowing on a mountain road.
Read the original story – LA Times.
