Top 12

Since the inception of CAR’s Top 12 Best Buys awards programme, Porsche’s 911 and Boxster have dominated the sports/performance car category. One of the principal reasons for this was that CAR’s editors were rarely exposed to other supercars as a group, but 2013 marked a watershed in that we got ...

“Is it the best grand sedan in the market? Undoubtedly.” This conclusion to the February road test of the Mercedes-Benz S350 BlueTEC tells you all you need to know about the definitive luxury sedan. But, don’t for a moment think the new S-Class is a default winner of this category simply because ...

We expected the biggest challenge to the 3 Series’s supremacy in this category would come from the all-new Lexus IS range that was recently introduced. In our review of the latter’s IS350 model, we picked it ahead of the former’s more expensive 335i Sports Steptronic in the test’s match-up box. ...

WHO’D have thought awarding a Best Buy accolade to a range that, statistically speaking, is the world’s top-selling passenger vehicle and a mainstay of the South African market would court so much controversy.The newly introduced Corolla was bested in a three-way comparative test in this issue and ...

Last year, we opted out of voting for the A3 because the line-up had consisted of only the three-door version. Since casting our ballots for 2013’s Top 12, the Sportback version was added to the range – bringing the total hatchback model count to a staggering 17 – and in the process forced us to ...

Whereas naming the Kia Rio four-door the winner of this category came as a result of protracted debate and victory by a narrow majority of votes in last year’s Top 12, the Korean sedan, with its handsome design and respectable degree of practicality, was a straightforward choice this time round. In ...

Headlining a rejuvenating Peugeot range (a process that will culminate in the launch of the internationally well-received 308 later this year), the 208 has crept onto the top step thanks to sensible extensions to the local range (which now kicks off with the 1,0 Access at R147 500, offers interesting ...

There’s something innately appealing about a no-frills budget car, especially if the price is bargain-basement low without sacrificing crucial safety features (one of our criteria for this award is that contenders should each have at least one airbag and ABS as standard).At R110 700, the locally manufactured ...

The March issue of CAR mag once again contains our Top 12 awards. Eagerly anticipated by the public and hugely respected by the motoring industry, the CAR editorial team lists its top cars (and runners up) in what we see as the key 12 motoring segments in the new vehicle market.As always, the CAR team ...