It's far from seventh time lucky for the painstaking process that is Australia's Best Cars.
The nation’s motoring clubs devote countless hours to find the standout new cars from hundreds of possibilities. In 2006, Australia’s Best Cars (ABC) reflects buyers becoming more demanding, more focused on economy, safety and the environment and less parochial.
Just four of the 12 winners from last year defended their titles successfully, as a wave of new products altered the motoring landscape. Petrol vehicles dominated, although this year diesels wrested three awards and the hybrid cause gained a champion.
ABC delivers practical, thorough and objective advice for new car buyers, with a minimum of sentiment. We have more impartial scores than subjective scores and any part of a car that can be measured is measured.
As a final stage of confirmation, the leading contenders are driven back-to-back.
Best Cars is not a car-of-the-year award; rather it brings together all mainstream rivals, and delivers verdicts on their class credentials. For full details of the scores and how they are determined, visit the Australia's Best Cars website.
Best Small Car
At $22,990, the VW Polo TDI seems an awkward fit for such a budget-conscious category, but this turbo-diesel hatch's struggle on value stands in stark contrast to its upside on performance and economy
Best Mid-Size Car Under $28,000
In the ultra-competitive Mid-Size Car Under $28,000 category, where an affordable price is crucial but buyers still expect quality, the Honda Civic has both sides of the equation well covered
Best Mid-Size Car Over $28,000
It is a rare occasion when American and Australian motoring interests converge
Best Large Car
Born-again Toyota has finally taken Australian large cars seriously enough to produce a sedan worthy of praise in this land of big sixes
Best People Mover
Honda’s Odyssey is filling its seats with a family of People Mover gongs, after notching up a third consecutive Best Cars title this year
Best Sports Car
In motoring history, the original Golf GTI was an icon, laying the framework for a new motoring genre, the ‘hot hatch’
Best Luxury Sports
For the ultimate motoring indulgences, look no further than the Sports Luxury Car class
Best Prestige Car
Buyers in the Prestige category expect a certain level of refinement and luxury trappings and, in Lexus tradition, the IS250 doesn’t disappoint
Best Luxury Car
Lexus has stepped up to the plate as a car maker with an environmental conscience
Best Recreational 4WD
During the seven years that the Subaru Forester has fronted the Australia’s Best Cars judges, it has claimed the distinction of five class wins
Best Luxury 4WD
Lexus continues to press all the right buttons when it comes to the luxury 4WD class, the RX350 claiming the marque’s fourth consecutive title
Best All-Terrain 4WD
Land Rover’s Discovery 3 is at the top end of the All Terrain 4WD market for more reasons than one
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