Everycarwetestgoesthroughhundredsofindividuallabassessments,soyoucantrustourreviews.Frommeasuringvisibilitywith360-degreecamerastothetrueamountofusablebootspace,weleavenothingtochance.
Thelinksbelowwilltakeyoustraighttoourdedicatedpagesthatdetailtheverybestcarsinvariouscategories.Otherwise,readontohelpdecidewhatsortofcarisrightforyou.
Ahybridcarcombinesapetrolengine(or,occasionally,adiesel)withanelectricmotor.Tomaximiseefficiency,energythatwouldusuallybelostasheatwhendeceleratingandbrakingisrecoveredtoabatterywhich,inturn,powerstheelectricmotor.
Furthermore,they’recheapertobuythanacomparablefull-electricmodelandgetaroundtheinconvenienceofchargingtimesandlimitedrange.Fromadriverperspective,afullhybridcarisnodifferenttoownandoperatethanaconventionalpetrolcar,althoughtogetthebestoutofityouwillneedtoadaptyourdrivingstylewithafocusongentlebrakingandacceleration.
Plug-inhybridmodels(PHEVs)offergreaterelectricdrivingrange(typicallyaround20-50miles),thankstoalargerbattery.Theideaisthatyoucandomostofyourday-to-daydrivingonelectricityalone,whilehavingtheflexibilityofapetrolengineforlongertrips.However,togetanywhereneartheirimpressivefuel-economyclaims,you’llneedtokeepthebatterytoppedupasmuchaspossible.Ourtestshaverevealedthatonceit’sdepleted,aPHEVcanbelesseconomicalthanacomparablepetrol-onlymodel.
Buttheyaren’tforeveryone.AllbuttheverylargestEVswon’tgoasfaronasinglechargeasaconventionalfossilfuel-poweredcar,andchargingtimesarelongerthanaquickfill-upataservicestation.
ThetraditionalsmallhatchbackremainsafirmfavouriteamongUKmotorists,andit’snothardtoseewhy.Thebestmodelsofferdecentpracticality,includingcomfortableseatingforfour,inapackagethat’seasytoparkinatightspot,withrelativelylowrunningandmaintenancecosts.
Thisisthecarclasswhereyouaremorelikelytoseecompromises,though.Somemodelsdowithoutkeysafetyequipment,suchascentreairbags,whichmakesthemmorelikelytoperformpoorlyincrashtests,renderingthemaDon’tBuy.
BeforethemeteoricriseofcrossoverSUVs,theconventionalmedium-sizedhatchbackwasthego-tofamilycar.They’reconsummateall-roundersthataren’tdifficulttodriveorpark,whilealsoofferinglong-distancedrivingcomfortandsufficientspaceandpracticalityforeverydayfamilylife.
Wetesttoseehowwelleachseatispadded,lookingindepthatlumbar,thighandheadsupport,soyouknowwhetheracarwillgiveyoubackacheafteralongdriveorprotectyoufromwhiplashintheeventofarear-endcollision.
ThebestsmallSUVshaveoodlesofcabinspacewhilebeingaseasytodriveassmallercars,andofferacommandingviewoftheroad.
Tomakesurevisibilityisgood,weusea360-degreerotatingcameratomeasureexactlyhowmuchthedrivercansee,becausehugedoorpillarsandsmallrearwindowscanmakeparkinganightmare.Sensors,camerasandfullyautomatedparkingtechnologyareincreasinglycommon,buttheseextrasshouldn’tcomeattheexpenseofawell-designedcabin.
You’llalsoneedtochoosecarefullytofindamodelthatoffersrealpracticalitybenefitsoveraregularhatchback.Weaccuratelymeasureeverythingfromheadandlegroom,throughtousablebootspace.
Thebestestatesoffertrulycavernousboots.Don’tgetcaughtoutbythemanufacturers’claims,though;somecompaniesremovecarpetsandincludethespacedesignatedforasparetyrewhenmeasuringandreportingbootcapacity.Weusefoamblockstomeasureusablespace,whichgiveamorerealisticfigureastheyignorethesmallnooksthatnothingpracticalcanfitinto.
There’smoretoconsiderthanjustalargeboot.Ifanestateishighoffthegroundorhasaraisedloadinglipbetweenthebootsillandfloor,itmaybedifficulttoload,especiallyifyou’recartingheavyitemsaround.Also,thinkaboutwhichnice-to-havesyou’dlike,suchasanautomaticbootopener,interiorlightingandcubbiesforessentials.
They’resomethingofadyingbreed,buttherearestillanumberofgreatnewMPVsavailableacrossarangeoffueltypes.Thebestofferdecentbootspacewhenallseatsareoccupied.
Aswithothercarclasses,wechecktoseehowwellMPVscopewithanemergencyhazard-avoidancemanoeuvre.Weswervearoundobjectsatupto56mphtomakesureacarremainsstableandcontrollable,evenunderextremeconditions.
Ourtestinghasfoundcarsthatcan’thandlesharpturnsathighspeedsandcanskidtothepointwhereyou’veeffectivelylostcontrolofthevehicle,whichcanleadtoseriousaccidents.
SomeMPVshaveslidingdoorsthatcanmakeiteasiertogetinandout,particularlyincrampedparkingspaces.However,we’vefoundthatsomelargeMPVshaveheavyslidingdoorsthatsomepassengersmayfinddifficulttoopenandclose,orthatcanslidebackoninclines,potentiallyposingariskofinjury.
Havinglotsofseatsisallwellandgood,butifthecariscrampedandhardtogetinto,thoseextraseatsaren’tmuchuse.
Ifyouhaveyoungchildrenandneedspaceformorethanonechildcarseat,makesureyoucheckwhichseatsaresuitable.Ourreviewswillhighlightwherecarseatswillandwon’tfit,andwe’llalsosaywhereit’spossibletofitthemside-by-side.
Ourtestsgofurtherthanthosecarriedoutbyotherorganisationsand,becauseWhichisindependent,youcantrustourreviewstogiveyouthefull,honestandimpartialtruthabouteverycarwetest.
Testingincontrolledlabconditionsmeanstheresultswecollectaredirectlycomparablebetweendifferentcars,helpingusdeterminewhichmodelsarebettersoyoucanfindtheperfectvehicleforyourneeds.
Andsoyouknowwhichmodelsarelikelytoprovereliableforyearstocome,wealsogatherfeedbackfromthousandsofUKcarownersthroughtheannualWhichcarsurveyanduseittogeneratedetailedreliabilityratingsforthecarswetest.
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