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For an explanation of how we rank reviews, see our ratings criteria page.
by Editors of ConsumerReports.org
Consumer Reports extensively tests the most family cars, providing clear numeric ratings in several categories (such as comfort and acceleration) and ranking the cars from best to worst. Consumer Reports… takes into account some important factors -- such as reliability, resale value and fuel economy -- that other sources ignore. You'll need a subscription to read the actual car reviews, but there's some good general information and previews that can be accessed without a subscription.
by William C. Montgomery
by William C. Montgomery
by Chris Walton
by Editors of Edmunds.com
by Tony Swan
Car and Driver's expert tests are comprehensive and exact, measuring noise levels and lane-change maneuvers (down to the hundredth of a second) among other factors. Reviewer Tony Snow compares the brand-new… 2010 Ford Fusion with the 2009 Mazda6 and the reigning champion Honda Accord. The Accord wins by a hair, barely outperforming the sporty Mazda6. The Accord has been one of Car and Driver's 2009 10Best cars for 23 out of 27 years.
by Editors of Motor Trend
by Ron Kiino
Motor Trend experts set out to find the best family sedan, but they wind up picking two models: The Volkswagen Passat is their fun-to-drive choice, but the Hyundai Sonata is better on a budget. In all,… Motor Trend tests 10 four-cylinder sedans for fuel economy, safety, performance, value and more. Although this test looks at 2008 models, it is still valid because the sedans in the test have not changed much for 2009.
by Editors of ConsumerGuide.com
by Editors of Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety evaluates how well cars protect their occupants in three different types of crashes: frontal offset, side impact and rear. Cars receive ratings based on the… results for each test. In order to merit recognition as a Top Safety Pick, a car must get the highest rating of "good" in all three tests and offer electronic stability control. This year, nine family cars are awarded the Top Safety Pick designation.
by Editors of SaferCar.gov
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration crash-tests most 2009 vehicles and posts the results on this website. Vehicles are assigned a rating of one to five stars based on performance in… front-impact, side-impact and rollover tests. Only two family sedans earn perfect ratings in every category: the Mazda6 and Mercury Grand Marquis. Most other sedans get very good scores, but tests detect some safety drawbacks with the Buick LaCrosse, Honda Accord and Dodge Avenger.
by Editors of FuelEconomy.gov
by Editors of Kelley Blue Book
by Mike Hanley, Kelsey Mays and David Thomas
This head-to-head test compares three family cars: the 2009 Honda Accord and Mazda6 and 2008 Toyota Camry (largely unchanged for 2009). The results are presented in chart fashion, making it easy to see how… the cars stack up in terms of price, gas mileage, baby-seat friendliness and more. Reviewers crown a winner in each of 11 categories. Although the Mazda6 wins the most categories, it loses major points for subpar fuel economy. The Honda Accord is the editors' choice.
by Editors of Cars.com
by Jennifer Newman
MotherProof.com's testers (who are also moms) road-test new cars by living with them for a week. Aside from the usual performance/comfort/styling evaluation, they notice practical matters (such as car-seat… friendliness) that other reviews miss. MotherProof.com picks the Volkswagen Passat as the top 2009 sedan; this page links to a full review. A browse-by-body-type feature turns up more 2009 and 2008 sedan reviews.
by Mark Solheim and Jessica L. Anderson
Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine picks the best 2009 cars in a wide range of classes. Editors test-drive the cars and evaluate their performance, safety and value. The resulting short reviews are… unique in that they include predicted five-year service costs, predicted three-year and five-year resale value, and insurance costs. The Mazda6 is judged the best new sedan in the $20,000 to $25,000 category. This page also links to Kiplinger's "Top 25 At a Glance" list, which includes more top family car picks at other price points.
by Editors of CanadianDriver
by Jeremy Cato
The Globe and Mail of Toronto compares six midsize sedans -- five of Consumer Reports' favorites, along with the new Mazda6. In both narrative and chart form, the review explains how the cars compare in… terms of safety, price, reliability and more, but it refers to no actual testing. The Globe and Mail awards first place to the Nissan Altima, followed by the Chevy Malibu, Mazda6 and Hyundai Sonata. The Honda Accord finishes next-to-last (largely due to price and safety issues), and the Toyota Camry finishes last in this group. However, the review notes that all are solid choices.
by Editors of GreenerCars.org
by Editors of NWSource.com
by Aaron Gold
One family sedan -- the Mazda6 -- makes this best-of-2009 list by Aaron Gold, About.com's guide to cars. In a full road test, Gold evaluates everything from handling to trunk space on the Mazda6. Although… Gold loves the car, he does find a few flaws, and he draws helpful comparisons to its major competitors: the Nissan Altima, Honda Accord, Toyota Camry and Chevrolet Malibu. There are more sedan reviews here, but they aren't all as thorough or as recent as the Mazda6's. Reviews are grouped only by make, so this site doesn't make it easy to browse or compare wagons. (Note: ConsumerSearch is owned by About.com, but the two don't share an editorial affiliation.)
by Editors of Automobile Magazine
by Editors of U.S. News Rankings and Reviews
by Editors of J.D. Power and Associates
J.D. Power and Associates conducts massive owner surveys to find the best cars in initial quality, consumer appeal and more. This landing page offers ratings searchable by car category; we found family… sedans in both the "Large Cars" and "Midsize Cars" categories. Links lead to written reviews for each car, which sometimes fail to explain why a car scored well or poorly. The Chevy Malibu wins an award for initial quality, and the Volkswagen Passat wins for "automotive performance execution and layout," and the Buick Lucerne large family car wins for durability.
by Editors of The Wall Street Journal
by Editors of IntelliChoice.com
by Editors of MotorWeek
by Editors of BuyingAdvice.com
Winners here are included based on historical reliability; numerical ratings are included for each, but the origin or meaning of the rating isn't clearly explained. The attached narrative reviews are very… short and lack detail. The review is also dated, and it does not consider any cars introduced in 2008 or 2009. The Honda Accord tops this list, followed by the Toyota Camry, Subaru Legacy, Mitsubishi Galant and Volvo S40. A similar list devoted to large sedans includes the Toyota Avalon and Kia Amanti, but the other picks on that list are all discontinued now.
by Michelle Krebs
Interest.com lists six vehicles in total: three that they say offer an outstanding ride and driving experience, and three that they consider to be "the best value, with an emphasis on price and gas… mileage." Their choices in the former category are the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord and Saturn Aura, while the Ford Fusion, Hyundai Sonata and Chevy Malibu are deemed exceptional values for their class and competition. However, it's unclear if or to what extent these vehicles were road-tested, or how they were evaluated for the purpose of this review.
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