Strategic Vision Total Quality Award winners
- Image Credit: Porsche
The best cars in the mainstream categories
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See Local DealsEach year, Strategic Vision surveys new car buyers to find out what problems they've had with their cars in the first 90 days, as well as how much the owners enjoy the vehicles and what they perceive the cars' quality to be. Strategic Vision then analyzes the results to determine which are the best. This year 42,000 people were surveyed.
There are many different categories of vehicle in the survey, so what we have here are the various mainstream categories for cars, trucks and SUVs. There are some interesting picks in the list. Also of interest is the fact that the Tesla Model S has been supplanted as the highest-ranked vehicle overall. The new reigning champion is the Porsche Macan. Click on to see which cars won the different segments.
- Image Credit: Honda
Small Car: Honda Civic
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Midsize Car: Subaru Outback and Nissan Altima
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See Local DealsThe midsize class is split between Nissan and Subaru. The Altima took home top honors for midsize sedan, while the Outback was rated highest among midsize hatchbacks. Admittedly, the Outback has grown in size and height enough that it might be more accurately classified as a crossover, but regardless it's worthy of its award. We discovered that it's astonishingly spacious, comes with standard all-wheel drive, has an engine that's powerful enough and returns solid fuel economy, and it's all available for a reasonable price of under $30,000.
The Nissan Altima on the other hand has us scratching our heads. There's nothing wrong with it. It's roomy and drives pleasantly enough. However, this segment is full of better options such as the Mazda6, Honda Accord, and Ford Fusion. There's just not much reason to pick an Altima over almost anything else. In fact, you might be better off picking the Outback's sedan twin, the Legacy.
- Image Credit: Dodge
Large Car: Dodge Charger
Strategic Vision's only large car award was for a sedan, and that went to the Dodge Charger. This is impressive considering how long the Charger has been around. Although it has seen many updates, it hasn't had a completely new redesign since its introduction over a decade ago. Still, with a V8, the Charger is hugely entertaining, and it's the only way to get a rear-drive sedan this side of a luxury car.- Image Credit: Chevrolet
Standard Truck: Chevrolet Colorado
The Chevrolet Colorado edges out the Toyota Tacoma and Nissan Frontier for Strategic Vision's standard truck award. In the past, the Colorado has impressed us with a high-quality interior and healthy engines. Speaking of which, the optional diesel is surprisingly refined and good for towing. Our pick of the litter though would be the hardcore ZR2 off-road version.- Image Credit: Toyota
Fullsize Truck: Toyota Tundra
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Small SUV/Crossover: Jeep Wrangler and Subaru Crosstrek
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See Local DealsFor SUVs and Crossovers, Strategic Vision gave individual awards. In the small or "entry level" class, the Jeep Wrangler took home the laurels for SUV, and the Subaru Crosstrek won the crossover award. People tend to either love or hate the Wrangler. It has classic looks, impeccable off-road ability, and it's also almost impossible not to enjoy having the top down and the doors off. But it handles poorly, consumes plenty of fuel, and is generally crude. It's up to you to decide whether the benefits outweigh the issues.
The Subaru Crosstrek on the other hand is an all-around good choice. The newest model has quick, confident handling, good fuel economy and ground clearance with a hill descent control that will get you places a lot of crossovers won't. It's main weak point is a really weak engine, but that's something most subcompact and compact crossovers suffer from.
- Image Credit: Mazda
Midsize SUV/Crossover: Mazda CX-9 and Dodge Durango
- Image Credit: GMC
Large SUV: GMC Yukon XL
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Minivan: Chrysler Pacifica
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