CarPro News | CarPro

Inaugural Newsweek 2021 Auto Award Winners

Written by CarPro | Nov 16, 2021 10:00:00 PM

Just in time for your end of year car shopping, Newsweek is launching its first-ever automotive awards. After test driving roughly 150 vehicles, the Newsweek autos team is revealing its 25 picks for best individual vehicles and brands in the Newsweek 2021 Autos Awards. There are six brand awards, and the rest are individual vehicle awards in car, SUV, minivan and truck categories.

To come up with the award winners, the Newsweek autos team rated vehicles in two ways: by test driving them and by comparing their standard and available features and specifications to those of other vehicles in the same category. Over the last year, Newsweek says its autos team drove about 150 vehicles, rating them in seven categories: performance, handling and braking, technology, cargo area, seating, interior appointments and pricing. They focused on how well the vehicles lived up to the expectations of the target customer. Newsweek asked automakers to provide vehicles for testing and only models that were available were test driven.

Find a Certified CarPro near you

Best Car, SUV, Truck and Minivan category winners had 25 percent of their total rating determined by the test drive score and 75 percent by features and specifications. Brand awards were more subjective. In addition to vehicle scores, the Newsweek autos team looked at changes to the model lineup and other company activities to determine the winners. Newsweek says nearly all of the vehicles ranked are made in America.

2021 Newsweek Auto Winners By Category 


  • Best Car Lineup:  Nissan
  • Best SUV Lineup:  Jeep
  • Best Truck Lineup:  Ford
  • Most Innovative Vehicle Brand:  Rivian
  • Most Improved Vehicle Brand:  Land Rover
  • Best Brand For Your Buck:  Hyundai
  • Best Small CarHyundai Elantra
  • Best Mid-Sized Car:  Kia K5
  • Best Large Car:  Mercedes-Benz S-Class
  • Best Small SUV:  Subaru Crosstrek
  • Best 2-Row SUV:  Genesis GV70
  • Best 3-Row SUV:  Acura MDX
  • Best Full-Sized SUV:  Jeep Wagoneer
  • Best Premium Car:  Acura TLX
  • Best Luxury Car:  Genesis G90
  • Best Minivan:  Kia Carnival
  • Best Premium SUV:  Infiniti QX60
  • Best Luxury SUV:  Grand Wagoneer
  • Best Small PickupHyundai Santa Cruz
  • Best Mid-Sized Pickup:  Honda Ridgeline
  • Best Full-Sized PickupFord F-150
  • Most Improved Vehicle:  Jaguar XF
  • Best Family Car:  Subaru Legacy
  • Best Family SUVGrand Cherokee L
  • Best Family Truck:  Rivian R1T

You can see the full Newsweek report by clicking here.