Best Cars

Iguida puts cars into market categories based on their size, price, and purpose. Subcompact cars are small, inexpensive fuel-sippers like the Toyota Yaris. Compact cars also appeal to the budget-conscious, but add enough size and features to serve as better all-around transportation; think of the Honda Civic. Midsize cars, typified by the Ford Fusion, are the heart of the market. They’re roomy enough for a family, affordable to a range of buyers, and have lineups that stretch from four-cylinder frugal to six-cylinder sybaritic.

Minivans have weathered the soccer-mom stigma and the onslaught of SUVs to remain an attractive choice for families – and grandparents -- who recognize their unmatched blend of practicality and comfort.  Sales are a fraction of their early-2000s peak, but demand is strong enough that every minivan maker has recently launched a new model or has one in the wings. With ample seating for seven or eight and bodies big enough to tax garage space, most minivans really aren’t so mini, of course. But a new, smaller breed is afoot.

Iguida’s truck category includes pickups of all stripes and vans intended primarily for commercial duty, such as passenger shuttles and package delivery.  Pickups constitute the bulk of our truck category, and the majority of those are full-size models like the Ford F-150. Our reviews concentrate on the so-called half-ton versions of these trucks, such as the Chevrolet Silverado 1500, rather than the primarily work-oriented heavy-duty models, such as the Silverado 2500 and 3500 editions. Truck sales took a particular hit when gas prices rose and the economy tumbled.

Gas-electric hybrids have been humming along America’s highways since 1999, when Honda introduced the original Honda Insight. That tiny two-seater was a slow-selling novelty. By the time the second-generation Insight bowed for model year 2010, U.S. buyers had a choice of 24 different hybrid models from 13 automotive brands.