Good Housekeeping debuts Best New Cars list

Good Housekeeping, the magazine whose testing institute has evaluated products and presented the Good Housekeeping Seal of approval since 1909, has unveiled its inaugural “Best New Cars” for 2016.

The new list was compiled in conjunction with Car and Driver, the renowned automobile publication.

The two publications’ collaboration narrowed 160 vehicles to 41 across four categories; eight winners: Compact, Sedan, Eco and Crossover. Then, the engineers from the Good Housekeeping Institute logged 2,000-plus miles on real roads, assessing performance, safety features, family friendliness, price, infotainment systems, usability, storage and intuitive design.

Here are the winners, announced January 11, 2016 at North American International Auto Show in Detroit:

Compact
Mazda3 S 5-Door Grand Touring (2015): Swift acceleration gives this car a sporty feel while offering a slew of standout features including a Pandora music service and Bluetooth capabilities; heated side mirrors, rain-sensing windshield wipers, and 24-hour roadside assistance.

Luxury Compact
Audi A3 Sedan 2.0T Quattro S Tronic (2015): With a roomy interior and sleek styling, this luxury sedan has superior handling with speed-sensitive steering, while offering a powered panoramic sunroof, infotainment system with Bluetooth connectivity, and dual-zone climate control.

Sedan
Chevrolet Malibu Premier (2016): Thanks to loads of tech additions (Apple CarPlay and Android Auto-enabled) and a roomy interior, this clinched the top spot as a family pick for its exclusive Teen Driver system, which allows parents to set limits for young drivers and monitor things like distance driven, speed, stability control and collision alerts.

Luxury Sedan
BMW 328i Sedan (2016): The perfect combination of practicality and performance, it’s ideal for people who share a car; key memory stores individual preferences for climate, mirror seat, audio and even lighting. Another smart feature? The LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children) system with covers that swing open like doors for easy car seat installation.

Eco
Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Limited (2016): This hybrid beat out 40 other tested vehicles for best gas mileage.  It also offers a quiet, relaxing ride, and contains a hands-free trunk, leather-wrapped heated steering wheel, blind spot detection, lane-departure and forward collision warnings.

Luxury Eco
Tesla Model S 70D (2015): The state-of-the-art design (door handles, normally flush, pop out when you approach with the key) and high-tech feel wowed testers. The 17″ center touchscreen replaces buttons and knobs for AC and radio controls and comes with a Wi-Fi– and LTE-enabled Web browser. Another perk? 360-degree sonar sensors for crash prevention.

Crossover
Ford Edge Titanium FWD (2016): The whole family (and their stuff) will fit in this spacious, ultra-comfortable vehicle, with natural steering and great visibility, SecuriCode keyless keypad and second-row inflatable safety belts.

Luxury Crossover
Volvo XC90 AWD Inscription (2016): The best for comfort and trunk space, it easily seats seven, including an integrated child booster seat. Tons of safety, semi-autonomous driving, and infotainment features abound, along with a 9.3” touchscreen, natural voice controls, a four-zone climate system, and more.