Only one American car company made the top list of best family cars created by two national consumer resources used by parents and car buyers.
General Motors’ Chevrolet Volt made the list for Best Green Car on the list of top 10 Best Family Cars of 2016 created by Parents magazine and Edmunds.com released earlier this week.
The rest of the list by Parents and Edmunds.com is dominated by Japanese and Korean companies and includes vehicles from Kia, Mazda, Honda, Subaru, Hyundai, Toyota and Nissan.
“The 2016 Chevrolet Volt provides our owners with a no-compromise electric driving experience,” said Alan Batey, president of GM North America, in a news release on Chevy’s website. “We believe our engineering prowess combined with data from thousands of customers allows us to deliver the most capable plug-in vehicle in the industry. According to independent surveyors, Volt owners are the most satisfied in the industry and they were our compass for developing the next-generation model.”
The 2016 Volt electric car features a new efficient propulsion system that has a range of 400 miles but can be up to 1,000 miles between gas fill-ups with regular charging. The new model’s two-motor drive system is about 12 percent more efficient and weighs 100 pounds lighter than the previous version.
Other features include a faster acceleration, increased battery capacity, a ranger extender, quieter ride, five-passenger seating and more. The starting price for a new Volt is $25,720 after the $7,500 federal tax credit.
Both Kia and Honda had two different models from their lineups make the top 10 list.
Kia Motors’ Kia Soul was named the Best Budget Vehicle at a starting price of $15,800, and the Kia Optima was named the Best Sedan at a starting price of $21,990.
“The iconic urban passenger vehicle has numerous features geared toward families on the go who are looking for advanced driver assistance systems, cutting-edge technology, spacious passenger seating, and cargo space,” said Orth Hedrick, vice president, product planning KMA, in a previous news release about the Soul on Kia’s website.
Honda Motor Company’s Honda Civic was named the Best Small Sedan at a starting price of $18,640, and the Honda Pilot was named the Best SUV at a starting price of $30,145.
“This tenth-generation Civic is quite simply the most ambitious remake of Civic we’ve ever done,” said John Mendel, executive vice president of American Honda Motor Co. Inc. in a previous news release about the latest version of the Civic. “We are bringing more new technology and innovative thinking to Civic than ever before to establish a new benchmark for fun-to-drive performance, fuel efficiency, safety performance and refinement in the compact class.”
The following is a complete list of the vehicles with their categories and starting prices.
Best Budget Vehicle: Kia Soul, $15,800. TFLcar rating: N/A
Best Green Car: Chevrolet Volt, $25,720 after $7,500 federal tax credit. TFLcar rating: Buy It
Best Hatchback: Mazda 3, $18,545. TFLcar rating: Buy It (2015 model)
Best Small Sedan: Honda Civic, $18,640. TFLcar rating: N/A
Best Sedan: Kia Optima, $21,990. TFLcar rating: Lease It
Best Wagon: Subaru Outback, $24,995. TFLcar rating: Buy It (2015 model)
Best Crossover (1): Hyundai Tucson, $22,700. TFLcar rating: Buy It
Best Crossover (2): Nissan Murano, $29,660. TFLcar rating: Buy It
Best Minivan: Toyota Sienna, $28,850. TFLcar review: N/A
Best SUV: Honda Pilot, $30,145. TFLcar rating: Lease It
Watch this TFLcar.com video as we find out just what the real world mileage is for the 2016 Chevy Volt: