Car Comparison Tests
Family-Sedan Comparison Test: 2021 Honda Accord vs. Camry, K5, Sonata, Altima, Legacy, and Mazda 6
Honda Accord Full Overview The combination of reduced space and a lower ride height (relative to SUVs), and cheap gas is killing sedans. As you may have noticed, there are no American nameplates in this Big Test. Ford discontinued the Fusion, the Chrysler 200 was unceremoniously dumped before it could even complete its model cycle, and Chevrolet is reportedly letting the Malibu die after the 2023 model year—just like Volkswagen is doing with the Passat. But the family sedan is far from dead. Americans bought nearly 1 million of them last year. Japanese manufacturers keep investing in the segment, and the Koreans are not giving up—the Kia K5 is the newest model in the segment, while the Hyundai Sonata arrived in late 2019. After all, with Detroit walking away from sedans, that market share ...
2021 Kia K5 vs. Subaru Legacy: AWD Sedans Match Up!
Kia K5 Full Overview The Subaru Legacy has been offered with all-wheel drive since its inception in 1989, but AWD didn’t come standard on U.S. models until the second-gen Legacy arrived several years later. The new 2021 Kia K5, on the other hand, carries an AWD badge right out of the gate, distinguishing itself from the Hyundai Sonata, which shares its platform and powertrain. The 2021 Subaru Legacy and Kia K5 are rather different cars in terms of styling and their overall approach, but how does the Legacy stand against its newest direct competitor? 2021 Kia K5 vs. 2021 Subaru Legacy: Quick Context Back when sedans were hugely popular, manufacturers sliced up the market the same way they do with SUVs today: Product diversification allowed them to generate more sales, and the introduc...
2021 Honda Accord vs. Hyundai Sonata vs. Subaru Legacy Comparison Test: The One To Beat
Honda Accord Full Overview That’s what makes such a comparison test so difficult. The losers aren’t really that loser-ish at all—even bottom-of-the-pack finishers will shuttle you and your family around town for the next 150,000 miles without major hiccups. Which brings us to the candidates in this three-way comparison test: the 2021 Honda Accord, Hyundai Sonata, and Subaru Legacy. For the 99 percentile use case, put those suckers on a dart board and throw that pin. Your results won’t vary all that much. Often, it comes down to personal preference—buy the car you love. But for those of you on the fence, we’re here to help. We know your time is valuable, so for you TL;DR folks out there, the winner of this comparison test is the Accord, straight up. But there are man...
2021 Toyota Camry vs. 2021 Hyundai Sonata: Freshened Four-Door Fight
See the Full Model Overview There remains a strong offering of midsize sedans on the market today, despite the unwavering juggernaut known as the SUV craze. While American automakers have all but abandoned ship, manufacturers like Toyota, Hyundai, Honda, Subaru, Mazda, Kia, and Nissan continue to roll out new models and update existing ones. In Toyota’s case, it capped 2020 by touting its Camry as the best-selling passenger car in the U.S. for the 19th consecutive year, with sales topping 294,000. As always, the Camry faces a steady lineup of challengers. Hyundai launched a new Sonata for 2020 with a fresh, stylish design intended to punt the midsize sedan into the heart of the conversation. Toyota, for its part, refreshed the three-year-old Camry for 2021, which encompassed some ext...
2021 Honda Accord vs. 2021 Mazda 6 Turbo Comparison Test: We Have a Clear Winner
Honda Accord Full Overview The Honda Accord and the Mazda 6 have been the top-ranked midsize sedans at MotorTrend HQ for a long time now, but both are several years into their life cycles. And both now face heavy competition from newer models. The Honda and the Mazda still have plenty to recommend them, but which is aging more gracefully? And which still has what it takes to withstand the stiff competition coming from brand-new models like the Kia K5 and the Hyundai Sonata? Right up front, we need to address a mismatch: Our Accord for this comparison-test review is an EX-L equipped with the base 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine making 192 horsepower and 192 lb-ft of torque. The Mazda 6 we tested is a Turbo Carbon Edition with a 2.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder good for 227 h...
2020 Lincoln Navigator Black Label vs. BMW X7 xDrive40i: ’Gator or Bimmer?
See the Full Model Overview At first glance, this pairing may seem a bit strange, but let us explain. The BMW X7 is the newest kid on the block, and if it’s going to join the three-row luxury SUV club, it has to face a veteran like the Navigator. Until recently, BMW trailed Mercedes-Benz in the market for years. Similarly, the Navigator is yet to reach the sales records held by the Escalade. The underdog status of both the X7 and the Navigator makes it the perfect match. Lincoln Navigator Black Label Vs. BMW X7 xDrive40i: Price Tags and Size See all 87 photos As tested, the Lincoln Navigator Black Label stickers for $98,850, and closely behind the BMW X7 xDrive40i checks out at $96,895. Although the difference between these two luxury SUVs is a mere $1,955, the X7 price includes $22,...
2021 Mercedes-AMG E63 S vs. Audi RS6 Avant Comparison Test: A Tale of Two Super Wagons
Mercedes-Benz E-Class Full Overview Case in point: The Audi RS6 starts life at $110,045, and the E63 S Wagon begins at $113,500. Emphasis on begins, as by the time a few option boxes are ticked the total kitty for the Mercedes is $129,120. Not to be outdone, the Audi’s price swelled to $131,645 as tested. Not cheap, not even kinda cheap, though for some, well worth the scratch. We’ll get to why that’s so in a moment. Back to the similarities, both high-performance haulers are wagon variants of their respective brands’ brot und butter midsize sedans. The RS6 is underpinned by the (we suspect) quite fine A6 Avant, whereas the AMG is a hot-rodded version of the (no doubt) excellent E-Class Wagon. Why my uncertainty? For reasons too cynical to breathe air into, neither ...
Wonder Wagons: 2021 Audi RS6 vs. 2021 Porsche Panamera Turbo S
Porsche Panamera Full Overview Back when we first started doing our Best Driver’s Car competition, we needed a mission statement, a way to explain what made the whole thing worth doing as elaborately as we do and why it wasn’t a simple comparison of objective test results and lap times. International bureau chief Angus MacKenzie, then editor-in-chief, laid it out succinctly: If numbers are all that matter, we could just test a Formula 1 car and shut down the magazine. How cars drive, how they feel, how they inspire confidence in the driver—or don’t—matters. On paper, the 2021 Audi RS6 Avant and 2021 Porsche Panamera Turbo S Sport Turismo look nearly evenly matched, but the difference in how they drive is obvious from the first corner. Let’s start with the paper so y...
Dodge Daytona vs. Dodge Charger Daytona: What’s in a Name?
The 2020 Dodge Charger Daytona 50th Anniversary Edition is a marketing stab by the folks at FCA that capitalizes on the lunacy that was the original 1969 Daytona. As an homage to the original car, only 501 of these 717-horsepower beasties will be produced, a number that is supposed to mirror the 1969 production numbers. I miss having automotive heroes—those cars and trucks that, after flipping through the pages of the old buff books, would capture my imagination. Back then, I knew every option and engine code on every vehicle from nearly every manufacturer. Yet now, with the deluge of information we get via social media, I don’t commit as much to memory anymore. Today’s automotive culture is changing at a rate that’s faster than any modern-day vehicle. And while some OEMs...
2021 Hyundai Sonata vs. Kia K5 Comparison Test: Two Alternatives to Your Average Accord
Hyundai Sonata Full Overview Ask a MotorTrend staffer which midsize sedan is best, and the reply “Honda Accord” will come as quickly and reflexively as a leg kick follows a tap to the patellar tendon. The Honda leads our midsize sedan rankings, and for good reason. But for many buyers, an Accord or a Toyota Camry is just too obvious a choice, or too ubiquitous. For decades the corporately linked Korean automakers have offered more features and tech for the same or less money, and now they’re even offering bolder designs. Hyundai and Kia also still offer longer warranties than the Japanese nameplates, despite mounting evidence that you may never need it: Kia recently tied for the top spot in J.D. Power’s 2020 Initial Quality Study (Hyundai ranked ninth, Honda 19th, T...
2021 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid vs. 2021 Toyota Sienna: Hybrids Move the Masses
Before the current millennium started, minivans were America’s must-have family vehicles. For nearly two decades their versatility, interior space, and comfort features attracted families. But the arrival of boxy three-row crossover SUVs—with their unibody platforms, appealing designs, and all-wheel-drive capability—replaced minivans little by little. In the last 15 years or so, about a dozen minivan nameplates hit the guillotine, and during that time more than 10 three-row SUVs hit the marketplace. But minivans are not completely dead—Chrysler, Honda, Toyota, and Kia continue to invest in the segment, launching new models that are keeping families comfortable, entertained, and safe. The 2021 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid and 2021 Toyota Sienna are currently the only two gasoline-electric...
Mazda CX-30 vs. Buick Encore GX: Small SUV Showdown
Mazda CX-30 Full Overview These baby SUVs are very often based on budget-car platforms. Often, they’re really just cars masquerading as SUVs; we’re looking at you, Kia Soul. One might say the same of the 2020 Mazda CX-30 and the 2020 Buick Encore GX, which, raised ride height and available all-wheel-drive systems aside, are essentially a modern take on the classic hatchback formula. CX-30 Vs. Encore GX: Lux Bucks The Mazda is the cheaper of these two hatchbacks, err…crossovers, but you’ll hardly notice when you’re inside. At $5,195 less than the Buick, one might expect some sacrifice in the Mazda’s interior, but the CX-30 felt no less luxurious than the Encore. It’s also hardly any less spacious. The CX-30’s cargo bay offers up 20.2 cubic fee...
