Test Drive Top 10
Subcompact Car: Honda Fit Compact Car: VW GTI Family Car: Hyundai Sonata Sports Car: Ford Mustang Luxury Car: Acura TLX Truck: Chevrolet Colorado Compact SUV: Honda CR-V Full-size SUV: Dodge Durango Minivan: Kia Sedona Green machine: BMW i3 (Editor's note: This is the first of two parts. Capsule reports on the remaining Test Drive Top 10 selections will appear next Saturday.)
(Editor's note: This is the second of two parts. Read part two.)
Dear Santa Claus:
I've been a very good boy this year, and so I'd like you to bring me a 707-horsepower Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat. If you don't have one of those in your sleigh when you get to Chattanooga, a Tesla Model S will do.
Your pal,
Mark
OK, I can dream, can't I?
Here we are nearing the end of 2014, which means it's time again for the yearly Test Drive Top 10 list. For people making new car and truck selections these days, consider this a list of notable new models that deserve a spot on your shopping list.
Every year we try to boil down a year's worth of our Saturday Test Drive columns to pick the best new vehicles in 10 automotive segments: subcompact car, compact car, family car, sports car, luxury car, small SUV, large SUV, truck, minivan and "green car."
We take into account value, innovation and fun. "Innovation," in this instance, means the models have to be brand new or significantly updated. Value is important because everybody wants the biggest possible bang for their bucks. "Fun" speaks for itself.
Many of this year's selections are 2015 models that have just arrived at Chattanooga-area car stores.
The following capsules are shortened versions of previous Test Drive reports. Today we look at five ground-breaking cars, next week we'll check out the year's best trucks, SUVs, minivans and "green" machines.
Honda Fit BEST SUBCOMPACT CAR: Honda Fit
Long a consumer favorite for its cavernous storage area and nimble handling, the new-for-2015 Honda Fit now has a more fuel-efficient, four-cylinder engine and a new body style.
The Fit is a miracle of packaging. With the rear seat folded flat, it has 52 cubic feet of storage space. Although it's technically a subcompact car, the Fit has about as much real-world utility as a small SUV.
For just over $20,000, you can buy a fancy Fit in EX-L trim that includes leather seats (heated in front), push-button start, 16-inch alloy wheels and a best-in-class safety feature: a lane-change camera that makes merging left after passing another car on the Interstate a breeze. The interior is functional and uncluttered.
The Fit is powered by a 1.5-liter, four-cylinder engine that makes 130 horsepower. It won't win any drag races, but it will return about 35 miles per gallon of gas in combined city and highway driving.
In many respects, it seems to be the perfect car for a college-bound child, and it should last until he or she is out of school and gainfully employed.
Volkswagen GTIBEST COMPACT CAR: Volkswagen Golf GTI
The scorching new VW Golf GTI may be the most exciting car -- pound-for-pound, dollar-for-dollar -- that money can buy. Good luck finding another automobile under $30,000 with this much fun baked in. The GTI, the sport-tuned version of the Golf hatchback, is assembled in Puebla, Mexico. Motor Trend magazine just named the Golf, in all its iterations, the 2014 Car of the Year.
The GTI blasts from zero-to-60 miles per hour in 6.4 seconds, according to Car and Driver, and it corners like it's rolling on train tracks. The five-door, five-passenger version is the most practical configuration for a GTI, which also comes in three-door hatch architecture. The car that gave birth to the term "hot hatch" is actually unpretentious, with none of the gaudy ground effects and spoilers common in the segment.
This is simply one of the finest cars VW has ever produced -- the end result of seven generations of design evolution dating back to the 1970s. It's almost impossible to drive a GTI on the W Road up Signal Mountain without smiling and wondering what would happen if more Audi and BMW customers gave one a spin.
The entire GTI line ranges in price from $22,860 to $32,490.
2015 Hyundai SonataBEST FAMILY CAR: Hyundai Sonata
The Korean car-maker dialed back the styling and amped-up value for the 2015 redesign of its hot-selling family sedan. If the previous-generation Sonata was the homecoming queen, the 2015 Sonata is another class beauty who also happens to be valedictorian and captain of the lacrosse team.
The new-look Sonata hits styling notes that are more contemporary and cleaner than before. The Sonata's new sheet metal includes fewer horizontal lines that dive here and dart there, the hallmark of the outgoing design. A new, bolder grille -- which would look at home on a Mercedes-Benz -- also adds a touch of class to the 2015 Sonata.
Inside, Hyundai continues to deliver opulence at a budget-friendly price point. A new, space-saving dash is simple and doesn't intrude on cabin space. An oversized windshield increases forward visibility. It's easy to find a comfortable driving position in the Sonata, and a well-crafted wheel makes the car feel solid and substantial.
The standard powerplant is a 2.5-liter, direct-injected engine that makes 185 horsepower. A turbo-charged engine is available for those buyers who want a sportier driving experience. Our mid-line tester was a $23,764 SE model with the normally aspirated engine.
Overall, value vaults the Sonata to the top of the super-competitive "family car" segment.
2015 Ford MustangBEST SPORTS CAR: Ford Mustang
About once a decade, Ford goes back to the drawing board to keep the Mustang polished and packed with automotive goodness. This dutiful brand loyalty has kept the original American pony car relevant for 50 years. The car company has just introduced a major redesign of the Mustang for 2015.
Mustang purists will gravitate to the top-of-the-line GT trim, with its full-throated V-8, 5.0-liter engine. But a four-cylinder EcoBoost (turbocharged) Mustang is the breaking news in this product cycle. There's also a six-cylinder Mustang available -- and it's the least expensive -- but many of those cars will end up as fleet units, according to industry sources. Ford is betting the EcoBoost model will appeal to a new generation of pony car buyers for whom a turbo-charged four-cylinder engine that makes 310 horsepower and gets 32 miles per gallon highway sounds, well, irresistible.
The 2015 Mustang has a lower and wider stance than the previous-generation car. The fascia, which features swept headlamps and a long, sculpted hood, has a more menacing look. Otherwise, the body lines are a little more rounded than before. The interior, meanwhile, has the feel of a jet cockpit.
In our test drive, the new Mustang felt much tighter and quieter than before. Much of the improved ride comfort and driving stability can be attributed to a new independent rear suspension.
The V-6 starts at $24,425, the EcoBoost four-cylinder starts at $25,995 and the GT with the V-8 engine starts at $32,925.
The beauty of the 2015 Mustang is that it can be ordered as a V-8 muscle car for baby boomers, or with an Ecoboost four-cylinder engine for younger drivers who want more of a tuner-car experience.
Acura TLXBEST LUXURY CAR: Acura TLX
For years, Acura has offered two similarly-sized sedans: the four-cylinder TSX (which was essentially a gussied up Honda Accord) and the TL, a smooth six-cylinder cruiser that slugged it out with the Lexus ES for market share among middle-age, middle-income buyers looking for a relaxed driving experience.
With the all-new TLX, Acura is trying to fill both market niches with one vehicle that can be sporty when you're feeling frisky, and can ride like a town car when you're driving home from a steak house at Hamilton Place. Meanwhile, the "starter" Acura is now the Honda-Civic based ILX.
The new TLX is not the kind of car that will make you stop dead in your tracks, but it is the kind of car that will make you pause and nod approvingly. Lower and wider than either of its forebears in the Acura line, the TLX manages to look grownup and aggressive at the same time.
Inside, the TLX is a showcase of next-generation automotive technology. Oh, it has all the required luxury-car touches such as leather-clad seats, wood accents and a handsome steering wheel. But the car is clearly part living room and part spaceship. Armored with sound-deadening materials and equipped with triple door seals, the TLX is the quietest Acura we've ever driven.
TLX shoppers have the option of a 2.5-liter four-cylinder power-plant mated to an eight-speed transmission or a 3.5-liter six-cylinder engine making 290-horsepower and paired with a slick, nine-speed automatic transmission. A base four-cylinder TLX has an asking price of $30,995 and a top-of-the-line V-6 with all-wheel-drive (our preference) starts at $42,500.
In a word the new TLX is "smart." It takes the best of two premium automobiles and folds them into a demonstrably better car.
Contact Mark Kennedy at mkennedy@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6645. Follow him on Twitter @TFPCOLUMNIST. Subscribe to his Facebook updates at www.facebook.com/mkennedycolumnist.