Car Blog

Families in the market for a new car can see which models the experts recommend most in the list of 10 Best Family Cars of 2013 by the editors of Kelley Blue Book www.kbb.com, the leading provider of new and used car information.  All families are not created alike, so it stands to reason that all family cars shouldn’t be alike either.  Each year the KBB.com editors decide the 10 Best Family Cars, which cater to unique family specifications and situations.

“Show us 10 families and we’ll suggest a different car for each, but all of those vehicles will score high in areas like safety, roominess, comfort and value,” said Jack R. Nerad, executive editorial director and executive market analyst for Kelley Blue Book’s KBB.com. “Our annual list is aimed at helping families find the right ride and always includes something for everyone, with a special nod to the best of what’s new.”

KBB.com’s 10 Best Family Cars of 2013

¹ Average Transaction Price data for April 2013.
² Kelley Blue Book 5-Year Cost to Own sourced on April 25, 2013.
³ Kelley Blue Book ^® Residual Values sourced from May/June 2013 book.

To see KBB.com’s full list and Editorial commentary for the 10 Best Family Cars of 2013, please visit http://www.kbb.com/car-reviews-and-news/top-10/best-family-cars-2013/.

The all-new 2014 Mazda6 was presented with the prestigious Gene Ritvo Award for Design and Elegance from the New England Motor Press Association (NEMPA) in conjunction with Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts and the Larz Anderson Auto Museum.

The Ritvo Award honors the best in design in the automotive world, whether it’s a concept car, production vehicle, a marketing campaign or a particular element of a vehicle that defines elegance in design.

“The 2014 Mazda6 is a stunning example of the real-world application of the ‘Soul of Motion’ design language,” said NEMPA President Keith Griffin.  “It was beautiful on the TAKERI concept and now is a stunning sedan that is turning heads around the world. Gene Ritvo would be proud to have his name associated with the Mazda6.”

“The subtle but distinctive styling of the Mazda6 caught my eye when reviewing entries for the Ritvo Award,” said Meghan Melvin of the Museum of Fine Arts. “After reading the accompanying description, I was struck by the fact that the KODO design language was clearly reflected in this particular model.”

An evolution of the TAKERI Concept, Mazda6 features the brand’s KODO “Soul of Motion” design language, which is inspired by the movement of animals in the wild—their ability to showcase power in its purest form combined with agile finesse. KODO’s prominent personality, inside and out, easily distinguishes the Mazda6 from competitive people movers, whose personalities seem to have been relegated to match their prudish exteriors. With pronounced sheet metal strokes, the vehicle evokes a controlled intensity, seemingly moving yet standing still. Not meant to be ignored, the stunning Mazda6 presents an uncommon but welcome appeal of emotion to the mid-size segment. Read the rest of this entry »

Now in its third model year, the highly innovative, industry-leading Nissan LEAF pure electric vehicle added another award to its trophy case with the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) “Top Safety Pick” designation, which recognizes vehicles for excellent performance in four passenger safety tests.

The LEAF achieved the Institute’s highest rating of “Good” in front, side, rollover and rear crash tests. Nissan LEAF joins Nissan Altima and Infiniti M37/M56 on the list of 2013 Top Safety Picks.

“Driver and passenger safety are top priorities for Nissan and the ‘Top Safety Pick’ designation by IIHS reflects the design and innovation that have gone into this car to make it a practical, no-compromise electric vehicle,” said Erik Gottfried, Nissan’s director of electric vehicle sales and marketing. “The new, U.S.-assembled 2013 Nissan LEAF provides customers with a remarkable level of value, comfort and security at prices competitive with gas-powered cars in a fun-to-drive package.”

Standard 2013 LEAF safety systems include Nissan Advanced Air Bag System (AABS) with dual-stage supplemental front air bags with seat belt sensors and occupant classification sensor, front seat-mounted side impact supplemental air bags, roof-mounted curtain side impact supplemental air bags for front and rear-seat outboard occupant head protection, 3-point ALR/ELR seat belts (driver’s seat ELR only) with pretensioners and load limiters, child seat upper tether anchor, LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for CHildren) system and child safety rear door locks. Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC) and Traction Control System (TCS) are also standard on all LEAF models.

“The IIHS ‘Top Safety Pick’ recognition speaks to the ‘zone body construction’ design from Nissan’s Safety Shield Concept to help protect occupants in a wide variety of crash scenarios,” said Robert Yakushi, Nissan director of product safety.

The all-new Mazda6 with its fuel-saving SKYACTIV technologies and ‘KODO – Soul of Motion’ styling theme has been named by a prestigious US publication as having one of the 10 best car interiors of 2013.

Before announcing the ‘Ward’s 10 Best Interiors’ list, monthly magazine WardsAuto World reviewed 46 new or significantly changed vehicles, regardless of price, and rated their interiors based on aesthetics/design harmony, materials selection, ergonomics, driver information, safety, touch-points and comfort, fit and finish, plus overall value.

WardsAuto editors selected the third-generation Mazda6 for its excellent infotainment system, flowing lines, attention to detail, affordability and creative touches, such as contrast stitching throughout the interior.

“Mazda is delighted to have such a well-regarded publication as WardsAuto World acknowledge that the interior design, quality and equipment of the new Mazda6, which are typical core features of our brand, are among the very best available today,” comments Jeremy Thomson, Managing Director, Mazda UK.

“Our dealers are reporting an overwhelmingly positive response to the new Mazda6 from showroom visitors and this latest award will further encourage consumers to come and experience our range of convention-defying products first-hand,” adds Thomson. Read the rest of this entry »

Drivers often wonder how moving to a new address, adding a vehicle to their policy, or filing an accident-related claim could impact the price of their car insurance.

Today, those questions just got a lot easier to answer. The What If Calculator is a new online tool that provides customers with a personalized estimate of how different events can raise — or even lower — their car insurance premiums. And it’s just for Esurance customers.

This unique interactive tool helps customers make smarter choices about their car insurance and clarifies the insurance process. Users simply answer a question or two, and Esurance does the math and shows the before and after premium personalized for each customer for the following scenarios:

• Tickets — various types of traffic tickets or moving violations can impact rates differently; for example, a driver can see how a reckless driving violation increases their premium
• Accidents — an accident-related claim can impact premiums
• Changing vehicles — certain cars that have safety features, such as passive restraints and airbags, can help lower a premium
• Moving — moving to a different ZIP Code in the same state can often change a premium

The What If Calculator is yet another way Esurance is using the latest technology to make insurance easy for customers. Esurance also offers other innovative tools, including the Coverage Counselor® and Express Lane quoting, to help further streamline insurance for consumers. For more information about smart technology from Esurance, visit www.esurance.com/about/technology. Read the rest of this entry »

A new Kars4Kids survey revealed that despite high awareness and knowledge (88%) of tax credit eligibility for making non-cash charitable donations, most U.S. adults opt to sell their used cars instead of donate them. The survey also indicated that only 10.5 percent of U.S. adults have donated a car. The study was conducted in a March 2013 survey among 1,000 U.S. adults ages 18 and older.

Additional findings show that 94 percent of U.S. adults donate goods to charity by de-cluttering their homes more than once per year. Of the 94 percent who donate to charity, 36 percent of those surveyed claimed the garage is the space at home most in need of de-cluttering.

More than a quarter of respondents indicated that de-cluttering is the topic argued about most in their household. Despite the convenient and cost effective process of donating a car, only 5.4 percent of adults reported donating their used cars when they purchased a new one. Additionally, 4.6 percent of adults will keep their old cars and not use it, contributing to the clutter.

The survey also revealed that 69.4 percent of adults are making an effort to reduce their carbon footprint. However, of that number, only 6.5 percent of respondents purchased a hybrid vehicle. Furthermore, nearly 63 percent of those surveyed are not participating in one of the most effective ways to reduce their carbon footprint: donating an old vehicle for potential recycling. Read the rest of this entry »