Ford press release
Editors from MONEY magazine named the Ford F-150 (top) best pickup truck and the Mazda6 best family sedan for 2004.
The editors of MONEY magazine named the Land Rover Range Rover(top) best large SUV and the Mazda RX-8 best sports car for 2004.
DEARBORN -- Writers at a magazine called MONEY know a thing or two about which cars deserve your hard-earned car payments. Well, the writers and editors at MONEY gave four awards to Ford vehicles in the magazine's Best Cars summary for 2004. With four top-place accolades out of the 13 categories, Ford vehicles outscored its nearest rival, Toyota, which took only 3 first-place awards.
At the rate the awards are coming in, you could cut and paste this sentence into all awards stories: the F-150 won the Best Pick Up award. According to MONEY Magazine, "Under withering attack from its pickup rivals, Ford didn't bed down in a bunker. Instead, it charged, rolling out an all-new F-150 that bests all comers, including the potent Nissan Titan." The praise went on for the cabin design that sets the bar so high other trucks, "...couldn't reach it on tiptoe." The award citation concludes, "The F-150 is stuffed with value, style and substance."
"Most family sedans are about as shapely as a Xerox machine, and as much fun to operate. The Mazda6 is a virtual-reality video game in comparison." So wrote MONEY's editors about their pick for best family sedan, the Mazda6. Besting its rivals the Accord and the Camry, the Mazda was praised for its style, power and attractive price. "The Mazda straddles the parallel worlds of fantasy and family like few other cars, making it a true superhero."
If someone has more than a family to haul in a Mazda6, the MONEY editors suggest the Land Rover Range Rover as Best Large SUV. The Range Rover is praised for its "masterly" engine and precise handling. The magazine's writers go on to say, "Dessert is served inside, amid wood-paneled opulence that somehow feels just right, considering that this is still a tough truck that could climb Stonehenge as if it were a stack of Legos."
Finally, for the 007 in everyone, the Mazda RX-8 makes the Best Sports Car for the year. "Tired of gazing at extravagant, impractical sports cars that you know won't fit your budget, let alone the kids? Stop dreaming and start driving in Mazda's accommodating RX-8." MONEY singles out the RX-8's unique engine and praises the car's handling as sharp, smooth and "gutsy." Last and certainly not least, the RX-8 is lauded for a rear seat large enough to accommodate adults or a car seat.
MONEY Magazine tested vehicles in all categories, considering design, performance, comfort, features, quality, technology, safety and economy. The testers were asked the main question: "Would we shell out our own money for this car?" That's the same question consumers ask themselves when they walk into a showroom, perhaps making the MONEY awards a good predictor of future sales.
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