The latest issue of “The Ultimate Car Book” says the best cars in their classes, based on safety equipment, crash-tests and other factors, are two Saturns, a Lincoln, a Hyundai and a pair of Volkswagens.
The guide for car shoppers is published annually by author Jack Gillis of the Consumer Federation of America in conjunction with the private Center for Auto Safety.
The Saturn SL and the larger L and LW models were top-rated in the subcompact and intermediate classes, and the Lincoln Town Car scored highest among large cars. Three compacts tied: the Hyundai Elantra and the VW Golf and Jetta.
Among light trucks, the book gives top ratings in their classes to the Mercury Villager minivan, Ford Escape compact sport-utility vehicle, Lincoln Navigator large SUV, Mazda compact pickup and Ford F-Series full-size pickup. Ford Motor Co. is the parent of all those makes.
“No one car performed perfectly in every category,” Gillis said. “And that is endemic of the tradeoffs consumers have to make.”
