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By Christine M. Ferrara
10/5/1998 Post a comment

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You knew they were everywhere, and now you know why: The Honda Accord is the car readers would pick if they were buying a new car today, and the most popular model already being driven by respondents, according to the 19th annual Design News Auto Survey. The sedan edged out last year's new-car winner, the Ford Explorer, which fell to third place. The Toyota Camry held onto its number-two position from last year.

The Accord's ascent may be due to a return to practicality. SUVs have been slammed for lousy gas mileage--the Ford Explorer averages about 16 mpg--and poor safety records. According to federal statistics, more Americans die in crashes involving a car and a light truck than in crashes involving two cars.

The Honda Accord, on the other hand, is a perennial favorite among car ratings groups such as Consumer Reports, which has consistently given it high marks for reliability, safety, and gas mileage.

Indeed, these factors are also important to design engineers. When asked to rank the top six features for their next new car, 33% cited reliability as their top priority, followed by price (22%), appearance (14%), inside comfort (11%), and safety (9%).

Although the Honda Ac-cord is the number-one model readers drive, if you total the different Ford models readers drive, Ford emerges as the top manufacturer. Twenty percent of readers drive such models as the Ford Taurus/Taurus SHO, Ford Explorer, and various Ford pickup trucks. Ford also is number one as the automaker from whom engineers would buy a new car at 15%, with Chevrolet again in second place at 13%. And Ford took top honors as maker of the best-engineered U.S. car. The best-engineered model, say readers, is the Ford Taurus/Taurus SHO.

Of course, there's always room for improvement. Forty-one percent of Design News readers said Chrysler vehicles have shown the most improvements in quality and performance in the past five years. Second place went to Ford (20%), and GMC took third (11%).

The automaker worldwide that shows the best combination of technical know-how and business acumen is Mercedes-Benz, according to 20% of readers. Chrysler and Ford tied for runner-up at 15%.

Best in class. Not everyone can afford a Mercedes. In the economy range (less than $15,000), the Honda Civic edged out last year's winner, the Saturn, with 17% of the vote as the best model. The worst car in this range went to the Hyundai line, at 26%.

Readers say the best mid-range car ($15,000-$25,000) is the Toyota Camry at 18%, which beat out last year's winner, the Ford Taurus/Taurus SHO (8%). The omnipresent Honda Accord took second place (16%).

As for the best manufacturers of cars costing more than $25,000, top honors went to Mercedes-Benz, with 13% of the vote. Second place went to Lexus (9%). Worst in class went to BMW at 8%, followed by Cadillac and Chrysler tied at 5%.

The best maker of luxury cars for less than $45,000, according to readers, is Lexus, at 19%. Mercedes-Benz is the best, say 10%, while Cadillac got 6% of the vote.

Dream on. If price and practicality were no object, what kind of car would you drive? A Mercedes-Benz was the most frequently quoted answer, at 7%, which tied with last year's winner in this category, the Chevrolet Corvette. Five percent of Design News readers chose the Dodge Viper.

Indeed, for the luxury-minded Mercedes buyer, the company has responded with the S500 Grand Edition. Mercedes plans a production run of only 600. What makes them so special? The Grand Edition boasts an optional 3.2(liter) in-line V-6, a potent 4.2 and 5(liter) V-8, and a 6(liter) V-12. Driver and passengers are coddled in premium parchment leather while listening to a 11-speaker Bose(reg) Beta sound system. Okay, what's the damage? Base MSRP is $89,500.

Back in the real world, one of the biggest automotive concerns is safety--9% of respondents named it as the most important feature their next new car must have. In the survey, 35% say Volvo makes the safest production car; 23% say Mercedes-Benz does.

In the same vein, 74% of readers say that front driver and passenger airbags are the most important technology for making driving safer. Side-impact airbags took 63% of the vote, while computer interlocks to prevent operation by drunk would-be drivers took 57%.

When asked what engineering features would be a "must" in their next new car, top answers included: antilock brakes (28%), dual airbags (22%), all-wheel drive (16%), cruise control (12%), and a rear window defogger (7%).

Looking ahead. Looking to future car features, engineers see several innovations on the horizon. Collision avoidance systems were at the top of the list at 42%. Multiplexed wiring systems weighed in at 29%. Active noise cancellation systems are an innovation that 14% of respondents would like to see in new cars.

Another feature that may appear on future cars is trunk-release switches. A National Traffic Safety Administration study is underway due to an increase in the number of children dying from heat after being trapped inside car trunks. It will evaluate the use of the switches for children and crime victims put in the trunk by their attackers.

Detroit faces many challenges. All of these innovations will cost money, as design engineers well know. Reducing vehicle manufacturing cost is the biggest challenge survey respondents named at 27%, while 24% indicated the top challenge would be environmental regulations. Twenty percent of respondents said alternate fuel is Detroit's biggest hurdle.

Electric vehicles may come into play in the future too. In late 1997, Arthur D. Little Int'l Inc. (Cambridge, MA) developed a fuel reformer that can extract hydrogen from fossil fuels and power PEM fuel cells (see DN 6/22/98, p. 90). However, engineers remain skeptical. In the survey, 52% would not consider buying an electric vehicle today, 30% would buy one, and 18% were on the fence.

What would make an engineer shell out money for an electric vehicle? Longer distance between charges, said 78%, while 64% said longer-life batteries. A lower purchase price would persuade 56% to buy an electric vehicle.

As for cost, 46% think that a $10,000-$19,999 price range would make buying an electric vehicle a viable alternative. A $5,000-$9,999 range would convince 18%, while 14% wouldn't buy an electric vehicle at any price.

Hybrids, another up-and-coming technology, use both gasoline and electric motors. Forty-eight percent of Design News readers would consider buying one, 31% would not consider it, and 21% are unsure.

But will hybrids be an option? Maybe. Toyota recently announced a four-door, hybrid compact sedan called Prius, which averages 60 mpg. Prius will be available in America late in the year 2000. In Japan, more than 7,700 are already on the road.

The top two

The top two cars according to readers for the past 10 years

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