GCBC's The Good 12 For 2016

GCBC's The Good 12 for 2016 includes the vehicles that would be most welcomed as permanent members of the GCBC Towers driveway. Park them out front on Christmas morning. Tie them with a bow. We appreciate your kindness.

None have base prices above USD $67,000. They reflect many different parts of the market, they come from different places, they're powered by very different engines, they're accomplished in different areas. And when any one of them drives by, I want it for myself. 

Click any of the images to be taken to the model's Sales Stats page. Don't forget to check out GCBC's The Bad 8, the cars which we don't want to receive even as gifts. For more on what The Good 12 really is, visit the GCBC Awards page.

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	Chevrolet Suburban Can it ____? Yes. What about ___? Of course. Even ____? Yeah, that too. Fill in the blanks however you want. The Chevrolet Suburban is what you buy when you need one vehicle to meet every potential vehicular need.
	Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Remember the first Dodge Charger SRT-8 with its audacious 425-horsepower V8? That car was an edgy and affordable Detroit riposte to the typical German muscle sedan. This Charger SRT? 707 horsepower. Edgy, indeed.
	Ford Mustang There isn't just one good Mustang. The V6 is fun and affordable. The GT is fast and evocative. The Shelby GT350 is a proper European sports car fighter. They all look terrific. They're all far more modern than Mustangs were just two years ago.
	Honda Odyssey The value quotient with every minivan is unbelievably convincing. The Odyssey separates itself from the people-carrying pack with the sort of steering, ride, and handling that, rather than punishing you, rewards you instead.
	Jeep Wrangler Just ask the politicians who flop because they couldn't pull off the cowboy-boots-at-the-Iowa-state-fair look: authenticity matters. The Wrangler is exactly what the Wrangler is supposed to be.
	Mazda 3 5-Door Mazda's most popular car is the best all-around small car money can buy. It's sufficiently quick and fuel efficient, tackles a corner with aplomb, and marries attractive interior styling to terrific exterior styling.
	Mazda MX-5 Miata You wake up early on a Saturday morning in July. You took care of the day's pressing concerns last night. You own a Miata, so you leave the house to go for a drive. To nowhere in particular.
	Mini Clubman Most Minis are simply too small. The first two big Minis – Countryman and 4-Door – are awkward. So why not a Mini wagon? Mixing great on-road behaviour and a small wagon body at an affordable price produces a winner.
	Porsche Macan S 20 years ago the idea would have sounded foolish. But what's so categorically wrong about a Porsche with Porsche-like dynamics, all-weather appeal, and space for five people and their stuff?
	Ram 1500 EcoDiesel The Ram 1500 is a very good pickup truck, with or without the diesel. Highly regarded handling, true full-size capability, and attractive styling are integral to the equation. But mixing all this torque with so little fuel is a remarkable achievement.
	Volkswagen Golf GTI Before you even spend time with the GTI, you know it will be good. But then it's better than that. More space than you expected. More power. More expertise on a twisty road. And a more mature blend of performance attributes than you thought possible.
	Volvo XC90 Nobody does wagons quite like Volvo. But the modern wagon isn't really a wagon, is it? We want to ride high, climb snowbanks, and see the traffic beneath us. Thus, Volvo presents the second-gen XC90, with one of the best interiors in the current automotive universe and a prototypical Swedish exterior.

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RECOMMENDED READING
2015's The Good 12
2014's The Good 12
Every Vehicle Ranked By November 2015 YTD U.S. Sales
Every Vehicle Ranked By November 2015 Canadian Sales
2016's The Bad 8

GCBC's The Bad 8 For 2016

In 2016, for a second consecutive year, GCBC's The Bad 8 features only two new nameplates. Six contestants remain from last year, as an insufficient number of new vehicles have been awful enough to replace them. As was the case last year, these are the vehicles that would be least welcomed in GCBC Towers' driveway, definitely rejected for the long-term even if welcomed briefly. 

Let's put it this way: Do you want to get us something for Christmas? Please don't get us any of these vehicles.

They're listed here for a number of reasons, some for just one reason. Whatever the reason, it's bad enough to cause your sales analyst of choice to reject the car so completely that I'd prefer to own anything else on the market; to reject the car so completely that you, too, should strongly consider avoiding it at all costs.

One key premise behind modern car reviewing suggests that, in 2016, there's no such thing as a bad car. That's not completely true, but even if it was, that doesn't mean you can't do better. In the case of these eight cars, you can definitely do better. It's not purely about reliability or durability or outright performance - it's about desirability, and the point at which desirability lines up with perceived value. These eight vehicles have their pluses, but the minuses – however few or however many - far outweigh the positive side of the ledger.

Click any of the images to be taken to the model's Sales Stats page. Don't forget to check out GCBC's The Good 12, the list of vehicles you should definitely park in GCBC Towers' driveway on Christmas morning.

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	Acura RLX The RLX is a fine car. But in execution, all its rivals do every little thing a little bit better. Cumulatively, that's a lot of things. A lot of things multiplied by a little bit equals a whole lot better.  Alternative: Cadillac CTS
	BMW X4 In a sense, the X4 is everything the X3 is, only with less space, less style, and more cost. What's worse, the X4 is here as a representative of a whole class: BMW X4, BMW X6, Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe. Alternative: BMW X3
	Buick Encore The Buick Encore doesn't like to accelerate. The seating position will make some people think Buick is playing a cruel joke. It's expensive, painfully cutesy, and pointless. Alternative: Mazda CX-3
	Fiat 500L It would be one thing for the 500L to be awkward, or painful to drive, or unreliable. But the 500L is all three. Alternative: Kia Soul
	Jeep Renegade Limited Not all Renegades are awful. But when you start luxing up a Renegade, it gets very sketchy. The price reaches into territory no car with NVH this awful deserves to inhabit. At this price point, buy something properly refined and roomy. Alternative: Kia Sorento
	Land Rover Range Rover Evoque Convertible This is just silly. And silly is acceptable. Sometimes. But not when the sand is going to be blown back into the cabin.  Alternative: Porsche Macan S
	Mitsubishi Mirage The Mirage is actually being restyled for model year 2016. It's still ghastly. And styling aside, the car still feels like a third-world city car attempt. There's simply no need. Alternative: Nissan Micra
	Nissan Versa Sedan This problem has been resolved. In part. The Versa sedan is no longer on sale in Canada. Americans, however, must turn away from this stain on automotive design. It's not as though there are other redeeming qualities. Alternative: Honda Fit

America's Five Fastest Growing Auto Brands In 2015 - A Decade Of Market Share

Compared with the first 11 months of 2014, the list of the five fastest-growing automobile brands in the United States in 2015 include two brands which only build SUVs, one brand which sells only one niche model without all-wheel-drive, and two resurgent auto brands which generate the majority of their sales with utility vehicles.

U.S. auto sales volume has grown 5.4% through the January-November period of 2015, and 17 auto brands are growing faster than the market average.

For the purposes of this list, we've excluded Alfa Romeo. Alfa sells but one model, the 4C, and didn't sell it for most of 2014. Alfa's year-over-year gain, therefore, is obviously going to be significant, and at 2425%, it is.

#5: SUBARU +13.5%
Consumers want practical, affordable, high-riding, all-wheel-drive vehicles. Subaru has a bunch of examples for you to try on, from the small XV Crosstrek to the bigger Forester to the wagon-like Outback. The trio is up 12% to 375,459 U.S. sales in 2015, or about seven out of every ten Subaru sales.

#4: VOLVO +18.0%
How desperate was Volvo for the XC90? After their former best seller crumbled over the course of a decade to eventually form only 7.5% of Volvo's U.S.s ales in 2014, the XC90 is once again outselling other Volvos in America. In November, Volvo volume jumped 91% as the XC90 generated 32% of Volvo's sales.

#3: MITSUBISHI +23.0%
Granted, Mitsubishi is rising from a low. The brand sold more than 300,000 new vehicles in America in 2002. Now, in 2015, the best year for Mitsubishi since the recession began in 2008, Mitsubishi is selling around 8000 vehicles per month, or about 95,000 in a year.

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U.S. Auto Sales Brand Rankings - November 2015 YTD
U.S. Vehicle Sales Rankings By Model - November 2015 YTD

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#2: JEEP +23.3%
The market share of SUVs and crossovers in America has grown from 32.1% in 2014 to 35.1% in 2015. Which auto brand is better positioned to take advantage of this surge in SUV/CUV demand than Jeep, which only markets affordable utility vehicles? The addition of the Renegade has helped, but even without that subcompact utility, Jeep sales are up 15% in 2015.

#1: LAND ROVER +35.9%
The greatest year-over-year gain, therefore, belongs to Land Rover, sales of which are up 36% in 2015. A new model, the Discovery Sport, is far more successful than the departing LR2 was a year ago. But the majority of Land Rover's sales aren't produced by the entry-level Disco Sport. The Range Rover and Range Rover Sport, Land Rover's two most costly models, generate 57% of Land Rover's U.S. volume. Their sales are up 41% and 21%, respectively.

Timothy Cain is the founder of GoodCarBadCar.net, which obsesses over the free and frequent publication of U.S. and Canadian auto sales figures. Follow on Twitter @goodcarbadcar and on Facebook.

Auto News For Thursday, December 17, 2015 - Lincoln Continental Will Soon Be For Real

Here are the five must-read, must-watch auto news stories and videos for Thursday, December 17, 2015.

FUTURE
The Lincoln Continental is quickly moving from concept stage to production stage, and early images suggest the production version will look very much like the concept. But is a sedan what Lincoln needs to make headway in a luxury market it controlled a couple decades ago? Lincoln fails to adequately sell the sedans they build now, and even properly popular big luxury sedans like the Mercedes-Benz E-Class and BMW 5-Series are fading as consumers turn to SUVs. 

REVIEW
So the Brits say the, “Vauxhall Mokka sells well but key rivals are better.” How interesting. We would say the same thing about the Chevrolet Trax. Which is a Vauxhall Mokka.

AUTOFOCUS
Jeep is not the most popular seller of SUVs in Canada. But Jeep is close to the top. Which brand sells the most? Autofocus has the top 25. 

TTAC
Check out these 18 auto sales numbers that help explain the U.S. auto industry’s status heading into the final month of what should be the best year ever for America’s automobile industry. 

WATCH 
Pikes Peak is a bit of a scary drive at sane speeds. But in an 800-horsepower Porsche 911 GT3 Turbo Cup racer attempting to climb Pikes in less than 10 minutes, the climb is terrifying.

Auto News For Thursday, November 12, 2015 - Fiat Fullback Is A Mitsubishi Pickup You Can't Have

Here are the six must-read, must-watch auto news stories, recalls and videos for Thursday, November 12, 2015.

TRUCKS
Take one Mitsubishi L200, apply a Fiat badge to the grille, change its name to Fullback, and you have yet another new non-full-size pickup truck that won't be sold in North America.

LOS ANGELES
The upcoming Los Angeles Auto Show will host a number of significant new vehicle debuts: 2016 Honda Civic Coupe, a Toyota/Scion CH-R, Mitsubishi's replacement for the Outlander Sport/RVR, and the already seen Land Rover Range Rover Evoque Convertible.

AUTOFOCUS
18. That's the number of years – consecutive years – in which the Honda Civic has been Canada's best-selling car. Admittedly, the 18th year, 2015, isn't over yet. But the Civic's lead is so great, no other car will generate as much volume in the full calendar year as the Civic did in the first 10 months of 2015.

TTAC
Where are Fiat Chrysler Automobiles' U.S. operations without Jeep? Put it this way: it wouldn't be a pretty picture. 

WATCH 
Alex On Autos' Alex Dykes reviews the slightly refreshed 2016 Honda Accord. The 2016 model year at Honda will focus on an all-new tenth-gen Civic, but there are changes to the Accord worth noting in AOA's most thorough and detailed video reviews on the internet.

Auto News For Monday, June 29, 2015 - Finally A New Audi A4

Here are the five must-read, must-watch auto news stories, review and videos for Monday, June 29, 2015.

FUTURE
No surprises here. In keeping with Audi's handsome but conservative design ethos, the 2017 Audi A4, the first all-new A4 since the fourth-gen B8 was introduced nearly eight years ago, looks a lot like the previous car. Although its dimensions have increased marginally, the new A4 will weigh approximately 265 pounds less than the outgoing car. The wagon is gorgeous, but we're more likely to receive a slightly elevated, be-cladded Allroad version of the Avant. Audi USA sells an average of 38,000 A4s per year.

TTAC
2015 will be the seventh consecutive year that Ford's Fiesta ends a calendar year as the United Kingdom's best-selling car. The Fiesta's lead over the second-ranked Vauxhall Corsa stands at 18,883 units through just five months. The Fiesta outsold the second-ranked car, Ford's own Focus, by 46,114 units in 2014.

REVIEW
Is the iM the answer to Scion's problems? Not if the market agrees with Car & Driver. Calling it the iMeh, C/D says, "The segment is also full of cars offering better performance," and, "If Scion is going to survive, it needs a following. And at first blush, the iM doesn’t seem good enough to build one." U.S. sales at the Scion brand are down 19% so far this year.

RECALL
In a recall not yet posted to NHTSA's main recall page, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles says 65 owners of Jeep Grand Cherokees and Dodge Durangos must stop driving their vehicles. The Durangos and Grand Cherokees were built in early June the recall is taking place, "because they may have been inadvertently equipped with improperly heat-treated suspension components. This condition, which was not apparent during the assembly process, could lead to component breakage, rear-end instability and/or reduced braking power." You can read more about the specifics and the means of discovering if your vehicle is involved at FCA's website or by calling FCA's U.S. customer care centre at 1-800-853-1403.

WATCH
Is the new HR-V the spiritual successor to the CRX, Civic hatch, Prelude, Accord wagon, del Sol, S2000, and Element? That's the story Honda is telling in this terrific commercial.

2014 Jeep Cherokee Limited 4x4 Review - Oddly Charming Or Charmingly Odd?

Iconic designs create big problems. An automaker can't continue to market a product which fails to meet modern safety standards or satisfy consumer demands for reduced noise, vibration, and harshness.

On the flip side of the same coin, an automaker is tasked with determining whether the reengineering of a style icon should include a completely new look or do nothing more than copy the original as closely as possible.

THE GOOD Top-notch seats New 3.2L V6 is just a $1300 option Plenty of Jeep bona fides Uconnect is easy and fast Looks like nothing else

THE BAD Cargo area? What cargo area? Is it made of lead? Glass roof creaks 9-speed sometimes falls into gear What happened to its face?

Jeep's XJ Cherokee lingered for 20 years, but Chrysler insisted it needed to be replaced twelve years ago. The Liberty that replaced that second-generation Cherokee didn't follow the Porsche 911's Weltanschauung, nor did it accept the M.O. displayed by BMW when the Germans reinvented the Mini. 

The Liberty looked a lot different and was, in fact, very different from the Cherokee it replaced. Moreover, there was no objective certainty that the Liberty was better than the XJ Cherokee.

For 2014, there's a new Cherokee. While the Liberty's departure has prompted a return of the Cherokee name, Jeep has once again decided that an XJ successor shouldn't look at all like the hugely successful XJ. In this case, there's no denying that massive improvements have been made - time spent inside the 2014 Jeep Cherokee Limited is quality time, indeed.

There's also no denying that this a dramatically new approach for Jeep. Take one Alfa Romeo Giulietta, jack it up, thoroughly transform the aesthetics, apply enough technology to create a genuine off-roader, and insert the world's first 9-speed automatic.

LUXURY?
Setting aside the Cherokee's divisive styling, the transformation has been both wildly successful and bizarrely disappointing.

2014 JEEP CHEROKEE LIMITED 4x4 Base Price * (CDN): $33,890 As-Tested Price * (CDN): $43,070 Engine: 3.2L DOHC 24-valve V6 Transmission: 9-speed automatic Horsepower: 271 @ 6500 rpm Torque: 239 lb-ft @ 4400 rpm Curb Weight: 4106 pounds Drive Type: four-wheel-drive Length: 182 inches Width: 73.2 inches Height: 66.2 inches Wheelbase: 106.3 inches Passenger Volume: 2956 litres Cargo Volume: 702 litres Max. Cargo Volume: 1555 litres Centre Console: 11 tennis balls Glove Compartment: 30 tennis balls EPA City: 19 mpg EPA Highway: 26 mpg Observed: 18.1mpg  Observed: 13.0 L/100km  * includes destination/delivery Base price refers to the entry MSRP for the Cherokee Limited 4x4. Cherokee pricing starts at $25,190.

Start your study of the 2014 Jeep Cherokee in the driver's seat and you'll find very little that could provoke negative impressions, particularly in a Cherokee as high-priced as this heavily-optioned Limited. 

Material quality across the top of the dash, the shifter and steering wheel, and even along the doors is suitable for a luxury vehicle. 

The front seats are two of the best in the business. In what direction is the driver's seat not power-adjustable; in what section is there not a prime mixture of firmness and cushioning?

Uconnect, Chrysler's infotainment unit, is straightforward and attractive and sufficiently intuitive that first-time users will have no difficulty, and not because it lacks a depth of ability. 

The Cherokee allows less wind noise to intrude than our Acura MDX tester did last summer, although the thunk of a bridge's expansion joints, for instance, are more than a little noticeable.

UTILITY?
Unfortunately, moving rearward in the Cherokee gives rise to frustration as the moderately spacious rear seat is awkwardly accessed. But the greater issues reside behind the rear seat, where cargo capacity is severely restricted. 

A Toyota RAV4, by no means a Chevrolet Suburban rival, feels like a cargo van in comparison to this new Cherokee. 

All Photo Credits: Timothy Cain ©www.GoodCarBadCar.net
Click Any Image For A Larger View - (iPhone 4 Through Tadaa's U-Bahn Filter)

These aren't simply subjective impressions, although the Cherokee's inability to carry stuff does seem worse than its listed capacity. The RAV4's cargo area is 55% bigger, the Mazda CX-5's is 38% bigger, and the GMC Terrain's is 27% bigger. Seats folded, the Kia Sorento's cargo hold is 32% larger.

Those aren't small differences.

130,000 PENNIES?
Once you have packed in as many people and as much stuff as possible and found yourself on your way with less than you'd like, you'll be awfully thankful for the $1300 3.2L 271-horsepower V6. Even with all this power, the four-wheel-drive Cherokee doesn't feel swift off the line; the extra power isn't really noticed until revs and speeds rise. 

The 4-cylinder, not yet tested by GCBC, can't be a barrel of fun. Blame our tester's 4106-pound curb weight, a couple hundred pounds more than the V6 all-wheel-drive Toyota Highlander XLE we tested two weeks ago, a crossover that's taller, wider, a lot longer, and much bigger inside than the 2014 Cherokee. 

Surprisingly, the Cherokee's absurd chunkiness doesn't seriously impact its on-road dynamics. Nor does the lard cause the 2014 Cherokee to feel as though it's hewn from the proverbial solitary chunk of tungsten: the glass roof was very creaky and there were a few squawks and squeaks that would disturb the buyer of any new car.

MORE IS LESS?
Jeep sales personnel won't hesitate to point out that the 2014 Cherokee features the future's 9-speed automatic. I'm not against change - the Ram truck's 8-speed automatic amazes. But even though Chrysler delayed Cherokee deliveries until the 9-speed had been properly fettled, we could live without a 9-speed that has not, in fact, been perfected. 

I wasn't bothered by any hunting for gears at higher speeds, but getting up to speed sometimes involved the sensation that the Cherokee was falling into gear, like an elevator in an old building which safely brings its passengers down from the sixth level to the second but then, with a jolt, bangs into the ground floor. Put it this way: on occasion, when accelerating, the Cherokee's 9-speed doesn't seem to know how to time shifts, but then realizes, "Oh, we need fourth... bam!" 

It's not at all constant, but the lack of refinement when there are nine gears through which to shift is more keenly felt than if there were only six. 

Fortunately shifts are most often imperceptible, and one worries about how poor the Cherokee V6's fuel economy would inevitably be without the 9-speed auto. This 4x4 V6 Cherokee drank 13 litres per 100 kilometres, equal to 18 mpg on the U.S. scale, in mostly city driving.

REDEMPTION?
Comfortable, but not spacious.  Powerful, but not quick. Heavy, but not rigid. Tech-filled, but not with perfectly executed wizardry. Uniquely - and perhaps offensively - styled.

The Cherokee is clearly a study in self-inflicted contrasts. Then you head off the beaten path, and demerits are forgotten. We weren't able to do this, nor did we get to test the Trailhawk model, but our Cherokee tester climbed snowbanks into a new suburb of Dartmouth where there aren't yet any roads or people. (Too many local off-road trails are narrow enough that keeping Chrysler Canada's $43K Jeep scratch-free would have been impossible.) With a multi-mode four-wheel-drive system, the option to switch to low range in Active Drive II form, a little more than eight inches of ground clearance, and a decent approach angle, the Cherokee feels invincible.

In 2014, GCBC Instituted ISTBTP, AKA Interior Storage Tennis Ball Test Protocol.
The Jeep Cherokee's ISTBTP Results Are In The Spec Chart Above. 

Added to the feeling of invincibility is a return to pavement which results in on-road dynamics superior to many of the Cherokee's on-road-only alternatives. Ride quality can get a bit jiggly, but it's never poor. The steering's on-centre dead spot is very small by modern standards, and there's an accuracy and consistent weighting that speaks to the Cherokee's Italian roots. Once that lack of 0-30 acceleration is forgotten, the Cherokee doesn't feel at all like it weighs more than 4000 pounds. It verges on agile and wouldn't feel out of place in a group of small crossovers that took off on a misguided trip to Circuit Mont-Tremblant. It's no Mazda CX-5, but it can be tossed down a twisty route with a modicum of ease. 

And it can go places a CX-5 didn't even know were places.

Taking the urban and wilderness behaviours together, the Cherokee has a deep-seated knack for making its driver forget about, for example, the small cargo area, the hyperactive Rear Cross Path Detection, the often ineffective and almost always aggressive Park Assist, the not-quite-there transmission, and the face a mother couldn't love. 

Isn't that the definition of charm? With no humans or buildings or people in sight, I was sufficiently impressed by the 2014 Jeep Cherokee's talent for balancing on and off-road competence to stop caring about its oddities. If you don't tend to head for muddy, rock-strewn hills, you're less likely to stop caring about the fact that the stroller and dog won't fit in the back together.

RECOMMENDED READING
Historical Monthly & Yearly Jeep Cherokee Sales Figures
2013 Dodge Journey R/T Rallye Driven Review
2012 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sport Driven Review
2013 Ram 1500 Crew Cab 4x4 V6 Outdoorsman Driven Review
2013 Toyota RAV4 LE Driven Review
2013 GMC Terrain Denali V6 AWD Driven Review
2014 Kia Sorento SX Driven Review

2013's The Good 12 - Jeep Wrangler Unlimited - $25,000-$30,000

JEEP WRANGLER UNLIMITED

Strange as it may sound, Jeep's stretched Wrangler is a pleasant place in which to spend time. A decent sound system, ample room, and moderate equipment levels are just the beginning. Visibility, paired with the Wrangler's squared-off corners, makes maneuvering the Unlimited in tight spaces a breeze. Compared to many SUVs with this level of interior capacity, city life in the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited is easy.

And don't act as though interior capacity isn't a reason to buy the Wrangler Unlimited. When contrasted with the regular-wheelbase Wrangler, it's the only reason. Seats up, the Unlimited has 163% more capacity for camping gear. With the rear seats down, the Unlimited has 91% more cargo volume. Not that we're submitting the Escape as a Wrangler Unlimited rival, but the Ford has three fewer cubic feet of cargo volume. 

The Wrangler's other attributes? It will take you through flooded valleys and up snow-covered mountain trails. This much you knew. 

You also know that it looks like a Jeep: iconic, influential, memorable, and nearly mythical in its status as an off-roader. Perhaps it's not your cup of tea, but factually speaking, it is a do-it-all SUV. To end up as a vehicle that's capable of so much more than you need it to be, Jeep needed the Wrangler Unlimited to make some sacrifices. Some are more difficult to accept than others; none are insurmountable.

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Engine: 285 horsepower; 260 lb-ft of torque from a 3.6L V6

Base USD/CAD Price: $25,695 / $30,045

City Fuel Economy: 16 miles per gallon

It's Not Perfect: Highway stability isn't the Wrangler's forte. Maintaining the straight-ahead requires more concentration than in most vehicles. Fuel economy is better than it used to be, but the city figure still makes the Wrangler a difficult pill to swallow for a buyer who's also considering a Kia Sorento or Nissan Pathfinder.

Sales Stats: The Wrangler is one of North America's best-selling SUVs, not just in comparison to other rough-and-tumble bruisers like the Toyota FJ Cruiser (which sells once for every twelve Wranglers) but crossovers like the Toyota Highlander and Honda Pilot, too.

Viable Alternatives: For those who want to be different, the Toyota 4Runner is more costly, but it's an awfully attractive proposition.

The Good 12

Kia Rio 5-Door - Fiat 500 Turbo - Volkswagen Golf GTI
Jeep Wrangler Unlimited - Dodge Ram - BMW 328i
Ford F-150 SVT Raptor - Chevrolet Suburban -
Mercedes-Benz E350 4Matic Wagon - Porsche Boxster S - 
Porsche Cayenne S - Land Rover Range Rover

The Bad 8

Chevrolet Spark - Chrysler 200 Convertible -
Ford Escape Titanium AWD - Honda Crosstour - 
Lincoln MKS - Nissan Versa Sedan -
Toyota Corolla CE - Volkswagen Touareg Hybrid

The Good 12 Rules

November 2012 Top 20 Best-Selling SUVs In America

America's 20 top-selling SUVs and crossovers accounted for 219,682 of America's 1.14 million new vehicle sales in November 2012. The Ford Escape trailed the leading Honda CR-V by 1363 units, but was the highest-selling of four American brand SUVs in the top five. Year-to-date, the CR-V's 15,042-unit lead over the Escape is not something that can be overcome in December, particularly if CR-V sales continue to rise and Escape sales continue to fall.

The chief newcomer on November 2012's list of the 20 best-selling SUVs and crossovers in America is the Nissan Pathfinder. With 23% of its year-to-date sales coming in the eleventh month of the year, the Pathfinder nameplate owes much to the fourth-gen model that was recently introduced with more of a crossover angle. 

The best Pathfinder sales year in the last decade was 2005, when 76,156 were sold. It seems unlikely that Nissan could sell 8000 Pathfinders each month now, but if it did, that 96,000 annual rate would have a hugely negative impact on the Murano, or at least one would think. Ford is doing a fine job of selling a big crossover-that-used-to-be-a-truck, the Explorer, alongside the smaller Edge and the better-selling Escape. Perhaps Nissan can do the same with the Pathfinder, smaller Murano, and better-selling Rogue.

All 265 Vehicles Ranked By U.S. November 2012 YTD Sales
12 different auto brands are represented in this month's top 20 list, although they hail from just eight different auto manufacturing entities. The Lexus RX was the only premium brand vehicle to crack the top 20, although you will soon be seeing in this month's luxury SUV sales post that Cadillac SRX sales shot up 13% to 5340 and BMW had a great month with the X5 and X3. 

GoodCarBadCar makes all these sales figures readily available through the Sales Stats homepage where you can select any make, model, overarching manufacturer, or the total market. America's 20 best-selling cars have already been published along with brand-by-brand rankings and the country's five favourite trucks.

Rank	Best-Selling SUV	November 2012	% Change	Year To Date	YTD % Change
#1	Honda CR-V	22,333	+ 36.0%	255,919	+ 30.0%
#2	Ford Escape	20,970	- 3.9%	240,877	+ 5.3%
#3	Chevrolet Equinox	16,821	+ 12.6%	199,070	+ 13.7%
#4	Ford Explorer	14,940	+ 15.9%	146,963	+ 20.6%
#5	Jeep Grand Cherokee	13,619	+ 0.5%	137,613	+ 24.7%
#6	Nissan Rogue	12,662	+ 16.8%	130,861	+ 16.6%
#7	Toyota RAV4	12,423	+ 9.6%	157,526	+ 33.3%
#8	Kia Sorento	10,851	+ 12.2%	108,630	- 9.2%
#9	Jeep Wrangler	10,337	+ 12.1%	130,124	+ 17.2%
#10	Ford Edge	10,142	+ 4.7%	115,535	+ 5.4%
#11	Toyota Highlander	9474	+ 13.2%	108,864	+ 21.7%
#12	Honda Pilot	9366	- 10.7%	103,482	- 1.1%
#13	Lexus RX	8871	+ 17.0%	82,847	+ 16.5%
#14	GMC Terrain	8158	+ 44.3%	86,270	+ 14.3%
#15	Nissan Pathfinder	8097	+ 249%	34,682	+ 49.0%
#16	Hyundai Santa Fe	6754	+ 10.2%	63,737	- 8.0%
#17	Dodge Journey	6569	+ 77.0%	71,875	+ 42.5%
#18	Chevrolet Tahoe	5895	- 29.8%	60,302	- 16.4%
#19	Subaru Forester	5703	- 2.2%	67,583	- 0.02%
#20	Chevrolet Traverse	5697	- 20.3%	78,176	- 20.1%

Source: Manufacturers
Red font indicates year-over-year declining sales

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