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Wards names its 2015 10 Best Interiors list

Wards Automotive has named the winners of its 10 Best Interior awards, covering a wide but affordable array of vehicles. Where last year's list contained two six-figure vehicles, including the $372,800 Rolls-Royce Wraith, this year's is, well, a whole lot more reasonable. The publication lists the Mercedes-Benz C400 at $65,000 (which seems off), making it the most expensive vehicle here. That said, we'd argue that the entire C-Class line deserves to make this year's list, owing to its varied and high-quality selection of materials. The other vehicle to break the $60,000 mark, meanwhile, is the $60,675 Ford F-150 King Ranch, which has 327,000 pounds of leather lining its interior. Only one other German car, the BMW i3, and one other pickup truck, the GMC Canyon, managed to make this year's list. Here's the full list of this year's winners: 2014 BMW i3 ($52,550) 2015 Chrysler 300C Platinum ($51,175) 2015 Ford F-150 King Ranch ($60,675) 2015 GMC Canyon SLT ($40,465) 2015 Honda Fit EX-L ($21,590) 2015 Jeep Renegade Limited ($33,205) 2015 Kia Sedona SXL ($43,295) 2016 Mazda6 Grand Touring ($33,395) 2015 Mercedes C400 ($65,000) 2015 Nissan Murano SL ($41,905) See what we mean about the mainstream vehicles? Not only is there a distinct lack of luxury brands, it's the price of some of the vehicles that surprise. The Honda Fit, Jeep Renegade and Mazda6 are very reasonably priced, especially when you compare Wards price with the starting price. The Renegade Limited starts at less than $25,000, the Mazda at less than $22K and the Fit at under $16,000. Head over to Wards for a more detailed explanation of why each vehicle won. Featured Gallery 2015 Ward's Automotive 10 Best Interiors View 10 Photos News Source: Wards Automotive BMW Chrysler Ford GMC Honda Jeep Kia Mazda Mercedes-Benz Nissan Truck Crossover Hatchback Sedan nissan murano gmc canyon Interior jeep renegade WardsAuto kia sedona wards 10 best interiors mercedes c400

BMW teases 3.0 CSL Hommage concept

If you're a fan of the Batmobile (no, not that Batmobile), we've got good news for you. BMW is building a concept that pays tribute to the original 3.0 CSL, and it's being unveiled at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este on May 22. Judging by the teaser image pictured here, it's going to be hot. According to BMW, the Hommage concept "is a nod to the engineering achievement exemplified by the BMW 3.0 CSL in its lightweight design and performance." Furthermore, the automaker says this concept will have "striking air deflectors, powerful wheel arches and a prominent roof and rear spoiler." The main focus of the car is lightness, and BMW trumpets the use of weight-saving materials both inside the cabin, as well as throughout the bodywork. That's all we know right now, but we expect good things. After all, BMW stunned us with its M1 Hommage concept a few years ago. Here's hoping the iconic CSL's throwback is just as good. BMW 3.0 CSL HOMMAGE. MOTOR SPORT WITH AN ELEGANT CHARACTER. Munich/Cernobbio. On 22 May 2015, the BMW Group will unveil the new BMW 3.0 CSL Hommage to the global public for the first time at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este. This model is the BMW Design Team's tribute to the BMW 3.0 CSL, a timeless classic and iconic BMW Coupe from the 1970s. The BMW 3.0 CSL Hommage is a nod to the engineering achievement exemplified by the BMW 3.0 CSL in its lightweight design and performance. The Hommage draws on the character of the earlier model and endows it with cutting-edge materials to translate it into the present in a new and exciting guise. Exclusive, confident, athletic: the exterior design. The design of the BMW 3.0 CSL Hommage exudes sheer dynamics, with the body framed by striking air deflectors, powerful wheel arches and a prominent roof and rear spoiler. The stretched flanks serve as an elegant counterpoint to the distinctly sporty front and rear end. Subtle and finely sculpted surfaces convey dynamics and exclusivity, while the extensive use of carbon fibre for the lower section highlights the car's systematic lightweight design concept. Elegant purism: the interior design. The rigorously pared-down interior of the BMW 3.0 CSL Hommage renders its lightweight concept not only visible but tangible as well. All the elements in the cabin are absolutely essential and each constituent has a high-quality structural or driving-related function.

Genesis cars win accolades, offer value — so why are sales so bad?

My high-school buddy Brent Cormier was so smitten with the Genesis G80 when he saw it at an event I hosted at SXSW in 2016 he bought a used 2013 Hyundai Genesis a short time later and fell in love with the car. "It surpasses my every expectation," said Cormier, a self-described "renaissance man" who owns and runs a real estate agency with his wife Laura, is a food service executive chef and part owner of Austin-based Thin the Herd Guitars. "I was locked into Mercedes and Audi for 10 years," he added. "And felt trapped in an endless pit of maintenance costs." After owning the Genesis over the past two years — including using it as an Uber and Lyft driver to earn extra cash — Cormier learned what some frugal luxury sedan buyers and a handful of car reviewers have discovered: Genesis offers great bang for the buck compared to other premium brands and can compete with the best in terms of performance, features and comfort. Hyundai's luxury brand also earned a prominent third-party endorsement last week when for the first time Genesis topped J.D. Power's 2018 APEAL study, surpassing German luxury-performance icon Porsche. The APEAL study (which stands for Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout) "measures owners' emotional attachment and level of excitement across 77 attributes," ranging from performance to comfort, and asks nearly 68,000 owners of new 2018 models to score vehicles on a 1,000-point scale. In its second year ranked as a stand-alone brand, Genesis earned an APEAL score that bumped it up 15 points to 884 and helped push it past Porsche — and past BMW, Lincoln, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Volvo, Cadillac, Land Rover and Lexus, in order of ranking. Last month, Genesis also topped J.D. Power's Initial Quality Survey (IQS) for the first time this year. And both its models were awarded Top Safety Pick Plus ratings by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, among 11 Plus ratings in all for Korean vehicles. Despite high J.D. Power rankings and great reviews, Genesis U.S. sales were off 50 percent for the first six months of 2018 compared to 2017, and in June Genesis sold only 796 vehicles — the first time U.S. numbers dropped below 1,000 in a month. Part of Genesis's APEAL and IQS success can be attributed to its small product lineup: just two models, the G80 and G90 sedans, with a third, the 2019 G70, launching later this year. And while those numbers may help in J.D.