Since 2009, sales of “trucks”—an increasingly diverse group consisting of SUVs/crossovers, pickups, and vans—have fully doubled. This rapid growth means they now make up a massive chunk of U.S. new-vehicle sales, 57 percent in 2015 and 60 percent through November 2016. In other words, it’s time we expand our 10Best franchise to recognize excellence in the majority of the marketplace.
We’ve been down this road before, with the 5Best Trucks awards we handed out from 2001 to 2008. As we did then, and unlike 10Best Cars, we’ve organized our new truck and SUV awards around segments, with one vehicle from each subset taking home the prize. The incredible model proliferation also sees us expand to 10 categories: full-size pickup, mid-size pickup, van, and seven SUV categories broken down by size and separated into luxury and nonluxury branches. The one exception is large SUVs and large luxury SUVs—nonluxury and luxury models compete for the same award because, once you’re shopping for a Chevrolet Suburban, Ford Expedition, and the like, they all wear luxury price tags. Explicitly proving our point, the GMC Yukon XL that was sent for our competition had a sticker price higher than that of the Mercedes-Benz GLS450.
The rules are simple. Every new or significantly updated vehicle with a base price less than $80,000 gets invited for a week of evaluation against past winners, after which every editor votes based on three tenets: value, the level of engagement from behind the wheel, and fulfillment of mission. (That last one necessitated a lot of clambering in and out of second and third rows, folding down seats to inspect cargo holds, and evaluating connectivity and convenience features.) Of course, we had no past winners for this inaugural year, so every nameplate—more than 140!—technically was eligible. For logistical purposes, we narrowed the fields to the new and updated 2017 models plus the top current models in each segment based on previous experience, comparison-test results, and, in some cases, the vociferousness and validity of the argument put forth by a championing staffer.
The results are in, and we’re pleased to introduce the 2017 10Best Trucks and SUVs.
THE WINNERS:
Subcompact SUV: Kia Soul
Marketing is a powerful tool. It can transform a Marlboro cigarette into a symbol of masculinity, an Apple computer into a futuristic fashion accessory, or, more recently, a small hatchback into a rugged, adventurous crossover. Or at least that’s how it’s perceived by the coldly rational confines of our head. But these sorts of perceptions—whether attached firmly to reality or not—are undeniably influential in terms of how people buy cars, and the crossover surge of the past few years is proof positive of this psychological phenomenon.
Marketing played a role in the initial success of the Kia Soul, too, even though the first-generation Soul wasn’t necessarily portrayed as a crossover. When it first arrived in 2009, it instead seemed late to the party started by boxy hatchbacks such as the Honda Element, the Scion xB, and the Nissan Cube. And yet, an ad campaign featuring the now-recognizable human-sized hamsters went viral and quickly helped put the practical and affordable Soul on the map. The strong-selling Soul now has outlasted that box-car trend, and its second generation arrived for 2014, just ahead of the wave of subcompact crossovers that broke in 2015.
Subcompact Luxury SUV: BMW X1
In our recent comparison test of subcompact, premium-brand crossover SUVs, we referred to them as “haughty hatchbacks,” and to some extent that’s an accurate descriptor.
But with crossovers of all stripes surpassing sedans in popularity, this class is the new entrée into the luxury-brand arena. To create its latest baby SUV, the X1, BMW adopted a mechanical format (a transverse engine and a front-wheel-drive-based chassis) that’s quite different from the brand’s other offerings, not to mention its historical tradition. BMW did try to adapt its traditional-style layout to this genre with the first-generation X1, which was built on a rear-drive platform and offered (as an option) the brand’s signature inline six-cylinder engine. But shrunk to this segment’s dimensions, that blueprint was just too cramped and space inefficient. So the new X1 switches to a front-wheel-drive platform shared with the latest Minis.
Compact SUV: Honda CR-V
Through five generations and more than 20 years, the Honda CR-V has become a fixture on American highways and byways through a winning combination of practicality, value, and affability. It has consistently been among the top-10 best-selling vehicles in America—across all segments—and chances are you know someone (or three) who owns one. Yet the CR-V has never been better than it is with the release of the all-new 2017 model.
Compact Luxury SUV: Porsche Macan
One 10Best Trucks and SUVs contender distinguished itself as the cheetah in our herd of buffalo: Porsche’s Macan is the crossover for those who know that America’s current cold shoulder for cars can be traced to an evil plot aimed at plugging our roads with high-riding, squared-off, hatch-backed trucks. Credit Porsche with focusing on the “sport” part of “sport-utility vehicle,” relegating utility to the working-class utes with too many seats and cargo holds stuffed with enough fertilizer to turn weekend relaxation into yard-work hell.
Mid-Size SUV: Mazda CX-9
To everything there is a season. A time for roadsters, and a time for wagons. A time for joyrides, and a time for commutes. But if the time has come for a three-row family hauler, descend not into weeping and gnashing of teeth. Yea, fathers and mothers, there is one among the throng that can save us from the drudgery of suburban life. And we shall know it by the name Mazda CX-9.
Mid-Size Luxury SUV: Audi Q7
Opting for the passenger comfort, luggage space, ground clearance, and, in some cases, three rows of seating that an SUV delivers works against the driving dynamics that car nerds—such as ourselves—hold so dear. Audi’s Q7, however, stands out among the crowd of decked-out family haulers as the one that best combines an ability to tackle practical jobs, be nerd-approved lively from behind the wheel, and boast luxury trimmings worthy of its price.
Large SUV: Mercedes-Benz GLS450
What is a Mercedes-Benz doing at the top of the large-SUV segment when alternatives such as the Chevrolet Suburban exist? Rather than walk you through the pricing minutiae between the entry-level $69,625 GLS450 and a base Suburban—suffice it to say that if you option the two with similar equipment, the Chevy’s price advantage mostly erodes—we’ll instead direct you to the three-row Benz’s palpable edge in assembly quality, driving dynamics, and space efficiency over its competition.
Mid-Size Pickup: Honda Ridgeline
When the Honda Ridgeline appeared in 2005, it was immediately clear that it had come from a distinctly different pickup-truck universe. Utilizing unibody construction, a transverse-mounted engine, and four-wheel-independent suspension, it had little in common with the body-on-frame mid- and full-size behemoths that defined the segment. Unencumbered by the weight of any “tough truck” brand legacy or previous attempts at making a pickup, Honda was free to develop a clever and practical truck that combined the pleasurable driving characteristics of its passenger vehicles with enough capability to suit a large percentage of buyers.
Full-Size Pickup: Ford F-150 / F-150 Raptor
Today’s full-size, light-duty pickup trucks not only can perform an impressive amount of work, they can do so with surprising ease and comfort. Indeed, these do-it-all workhorses are indispensable to individuals and businesses alike for their myriad abilities on and off the pavement. Yet one rises above the others due to refinement and innovations that push the art of the full-size pickup farther than its competition: the Ford F-150.
