EVs
Rivian R2 Is TopGear.com's 2027 SUV of the Year; Genesis Magma GT Wins for Design
The R2 took the SUV title in its first year on sale, while Genesis' mid-engine Magma GT Concept was the only concept to win a category. Full list below.
#Awards
EVs
Kia EV3 Wins a Second Award in Two Months as Bay Area Journalists Name It Best EV
Western Automotive Journalists gave the EV3 GT-Line AWD its Best EV trophy after two days in Sonoma County. The award lands a month after the small SUV reached dealers.
Analysis
GM Says It Won 'Top Awards.' Here's How to Read Car Awards Like a Buyer
Editorial lists, jury votes, owner surveys, and crash tests all hand out trophies. They measure different things, and some cost money to advertise.
Analysis
Europe's Car of the Year Finalists Are All EVs — and You Can Buy Two of Them
For the first time, all seven finalists are electric. Only the BMW iX3 and Volvo EX60 are sold here; the five small, cheap ones stay in Europe.
EVs
Subaru's $39,995 Trailseeker EV Is TopGear.com's 2027 US Car of the Year
The 375-hp electric wagon took the overall title on a list where the Corvette won three categories — its second award this month after Wards.
New Cars
Top Gear Gives the 2027 Corvette Three Awards, Starting With Its New Base V8
The 535-hp LS6 V8, the returning Grand Sport, and the 1,250-hp ZR1X each took a category, a year after the ZR1 won the same supercar title.
Buying Advice
Just Five Compact SUVs Earned a 2026 IIHS Top Safety Pick+. The RAV4 and CR-V Didn't
Tougher back-seat rules left the RAV4, CR-V, and Tiguan without a 2026 award. Here's every compact SUV that still qualifies, from $30,085, and the trim and build-date fine print.
New Cars
Mercedes S-Class Wins MotorTrend Car of the Year — at $114,100 to Start
The refreshed flagship beat 22 contenders a year after the Golf GTI won, and it reaches U.S. dealers with 442 to 576 hp and a $112,550 base price.
New Cars
VW’s 268-HP Tiguan Just Won a ‘Best Compact SUV’ Award From a Program You’ve Never Heard Of
The $44,560 range-topper beat the segment in the first season of a New York awards program founded by ex-Good Housekeeping Institute executives — and it’s the one model keeping VW’s U.S. numbers afloat.
Industry
The Palisade Hybrid Is the Only Three-Row SUV on Wards’ 10 Best Engines List
Wards judges rewarded the 329-hp turbo hybrid for keeping a mechanical all-wheel-drive system in a large SUV. Kia sells the same powertrain in the Telluride for $2,830 more.
Tech
The Hybrid 911 Purists Hated Just Won a Wards 10 Best Engines Award
The 3.6-liter T-Hybrid from the 911 GTS and Turbo S joins a 2026 Wards list with no gas-only engines on it — and it’s the only hybrid there that charges itself with a turbocharger.
New Cars
Nissan’s Rogue Hybrid Wins a Wards 10 Best Award Before It Reaches Dealers
Nissan’s e-POWER system joins an all-electrified 2026 Wards list before the first Rogue Hybrid is sold in the U.S., and the EPA now rates the SR at 41 mpg city.
EVs
Subaru’s Trailseeker Just Made Wards’ 10 Best List — in a Year With Zero Gas-Only Engines
The Trailseeker joined the 2026 Wards 10 Best Engines & Propulsion Systems list in its first year on sale, alongside nine other electrified winners — and not a single gas-only engine.
Heritage
Porsche’s Restoration Finals Pit a 4.0-Liter 993 Against a Rescued 930 Turbo
Nine dealer-restored Porsches are being judged in Georgia this weekend. The field is smaller than last year’s, and a third of it is water-cooled.
Analysis
The Cars That Hold Their Value Best in 2026 — and the Ones That Lose It Fastest
A five-year-old Tacoma has lost under 20% of its value; a Leaf, more than 60%. Here's what the 2026 data says, and why depreciation deserves as much attention as the sticker price.
Buying Advice
The Clocks Go Back Nov. 1. These New Cars Have the Best Headlights
Daylight saving time ends Nov. 1. IIHS data shows good headlights cut nighttime single-vehicle crashes by 19%, and these 2026 models get them on every trim.
EVs
The Charging Network That Beat Tesla in J.D. Power's Study Has Doubled in Size
The automaker-backed fast-charging network now has more than 180 U.S. sites, and Plug & Charge is coming for some Toyota and Lexus EVs.
New Cars
Kia Telluride Hybrid Wins Best Hybrid From Northwest Journalists; the K4 Hatchback Takes Best Value
Pacific Northwest jurors picked the 35-mpg Telluride Hybrid as their top hybrid, but the K4 Hatchback's value prize went to its priciest trim's engine.
Industry
Akio Toyoda Inherited a Recall Crisis and Left Toyota Building 300-HP Corollas
Toyota's chairman just entered the Automotive Hall of Fame. His record includes a congressional apology, a $1.2 billion penalty, a manual-only hot-hatch Corolla, and a governance fight the ceremony didn't mention.
EVs
Hyundai Ioniq 6 N Wins in Germany — and It's the Only Ioniq 6 Left in America
The 601-hp electric sedan beat the field in GCOTY's Performance class months after its World Performance Car win. American buyers, though, will have a hard time finding one.