Cars.com's Issues With MyFord Touch

The news today that Ford is rethinking its capacitive touch-heavy MyFord Touch multimedia system isn't a shock to our team of editors. Since we first tested it in a 2011 Ford Edge there has been a nearly unanimous cascade of criticism from our team.

Ford to Add More Physical Buttons to MyFord Touch

"While there's plenty to like about the 2011 Ford Edge, its electronics remind me of my not-so-smart phone: bedazzling in theory, befuddling in practice," editor Kelsey Mays said in that first review. "A number of editors got behind the wheel, and the verdict among them was unanimous: MyFord Touch needs a lot of work, and it's worth sticking to an SE or lightly equipped SEL trim to avoid it."

That was in January 2011, a year after Ford introduced MyFord Touch to raves prior to the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Our disdain has carried on to the most recently upgraded system found in the redesigned Ford Fusion. "The Sony system is busier with many more capacitive buttons — none of which feature an audible click or send a pulse of feedback through the panel to confirm you've actually achieved the desired result of your finger pressing," said Managing Editor David Thomas in his review.

Top 10 Best Base Models

An ode to the base model.

Black door handles and a seat that can't move up and down/
paying monthly for not a lot has me feeling like a clown.

Just because you might not be able to afford more than the very least in a car doesn't mean you have to sing the base-model blues. Automakers are adding more features to their lowliest trim levels to entice shoppers even if some are stuck in the stone ages before the USB port became a necessity.

Here are 10 models that we consider to be solid picks, even in their base-model version.

Recall Alert: 2013 Ford Fusion

Ford is recalling just 20 model-year 2013 Fusion sedans due to a problem in the steering system that could result in loss of vehicle control, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Affected vehicles were manufactured between April 19 and April 23, 2013. The steering gears may be missing an internal retaining clip, which could cause components inside the gear to become dislodged inside the gear assembly; this could result in impaired steering and loss of control, increasing the risk of a crash.

Ford will begin notifying owners in mid-June, and dealers will replace the steering gear for free. Owners can call Ford at 866-436-7332 or the NHTSA's vehicle safety hotline at 888-327-4236, or go to www.safercar.gov, for more info.

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Recall Alert: 420,000 Ford Sedans, SUVs
Recall Alert: 2013 Ford Fusion
Check out Other Recalls on Cars.com

May's Fastest- and Slowest-Selling Cars

From Land Rover's posh Range Rover to the redesigned Toyota RAV4, SUVs took 10 of the top 16 spots on May’s fastest-sellers list. Expectedly, redesigns ranked high on the list. The 2014 Subaru Forester is selling so fast Subaru dealers can't keep up inventory, and the Range Rover, Hyundai Santa Fe and Mercedes-Benz GL-Class — all redesigned — have repeat appearances among the fastest sellers.

The updated Mercedes E-Class demonstrates shoppers also respond well to a refresh as they do to a full redesign. And the new Lincoln MKZ Hybrid continues to sell, adding steam to the redesign's slow start. It worked well for Ford's struggling luxury brand: The MKZ had its best-ever May in the nameplate's more than seven years, Ford said Monday.

Then you have the old-timers. The 2013 Toyota RAV4 had its fifth month among the fastest-selling cars. The 2013 Ford Fusion, in hybrid or regular form, has made its seventh appearance in eight months. So did Audi's Q5 SUV, despite being in its fifth model year.

Cars in May averaged 56 days to sell. That's a little slower than April 2013's 51 days and a few ticks slower than May 2012's 50 days. Here are May's fastest and slowest sellers:

Recall Alert: 420,000 Ford Sedans, SUVs

Ford is recalling more than 420,000 model-year 2013 sedans and SUVs to check for fuel-tank leaks that could result in a fire; affected models include the 2013 Ford Fusion, Flex, Explorer, Taurus and Police Interceptor sedans and SUVs, as well as the 2013 Lincoln MKZ, MKS and MKT. In addition, Ford also announced two more separate recalls to address problems with engine-block heater cords in 500 model-year 2013 Lincoln MKZ sedans and steering gears in a small number of 2013 Ford Fusion sedans.

In the largest of the recalls, as of March 31, Ford had received 600 consumer complaints pertaining to potential leaks in the vehicles' fuel-delivery module, which could result in a fire. Ford said there had been no reports of fires or injuries as a result of the leaks.

"The condition could result in customers detecting an odor of fuel, or in some cases, observe evidence of a fuel leak on the ground," said Kelli Felker, Ford safety communications manager, in a statement. "While a fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source may result in a fire, there have been no reports of fires. We are not aware of any accidents or injuries attributed to this condition."

Most-Read Car Reviews of the Week

Despite having the fewest week-to-week carryovers of any most-read reviews list in recent memory, this week saw the obstinate 2013 Toyota RAV4 refuse to budge from the top spot it has dominated since the start of the year. Not only that, but the RAV4 managed to double the number of page views it received. A surprising seven of the remaining nine reviews were not in the top 10 last week.

Check out what was popular this week:

1. 2013 Toyota RAV4
2. 2014 Mazda6
3. 2014 Subaru Forester
4. 2013 Ford Fusion
5. 2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid
6. 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe
7. 2013 Toyota Avalon
8. 2013 Nissan Pathfinder
9. 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid
10. 2013 Nissan Altima

Top 10 Best-Selling Cars: April 2013

Nissan and Ford led a strong month for the auto industry, with sales up 23.2% at Nissan and 17.9% at Ford thanks to big gains among both carmakers' strongest sellers. Nissan Altima sales gained 35.4% while Ford Escape sales spiked 52% — despite similar year-over-year incentives on both and lower dealership supply for the Escape.

It may seem bizarre that the Altima, then, isn't among the top 10 best-sellers. It's been there for ninth months straight, and in March it was the best-selling car (not truck) in America. But a year ago, sales were dismal — less than 17,000 in April 2012 — so even a healthy spike kept Nissan off April 2013's top 10.

The Toyota Camry and Honda Accord had higher-profile struggles. The Camry's sales drop could signal plateauing demand for Toyota's seventh-generation family sedan, whose year-over-year sales have declined for three straight months. The new Accord, meanwhile, is just 7 months old, and shoppers found significantly lower discounts versus the 2012 Accord a year ago. It's a factor that could affect Accord sales through autumn. Still, Ford didn't seem to have a problem with that. Anyone considering the new Fusion found a similar situation — lower discounts versus year-ago levels — but it didn't stop shoppers from flocking toward the popular sedan, whose sales boomed 23.7%.

Best Hybrids for the Money 2013

Gas prices remain volatile, but even so, no one expects prices below $3 per gallon ever again, and many parts of the country consistently see prices near or above $4. As much as ever, shoppers need to know how effectively hybrids deliver efficiency for your dollar — if they do at all.

To determine if a hybrid's added expense is worth the cash, we devised an efficiency-cost rating to reflect efficiency bang for your overall buck.

It's simply the combined city/highway mpg divided by the base price (MSRP plus destination charge). We then multiply that number by 1,000. This formula can be applied to any type of vehicle, hybrid or not. A high mpg rating and low price provide a high efficiency-cost rating. A higher score is the better score.

We don't account for equipment levels, quality judgments, cost of ownership or any variances from EPA mileage estimates. The goal here is to pay the least for the most mileage, barring all other considerations.

Most-Read Car Reviews of the Week

Although there was no movement in this week's top two spots, the 2014 Subaru Forester substantially increased its lead after toppling longtime champ the 2013 Toyota RAV4 last week. The new Forester saw nearly double the RAV4's traffic in its second week atop our most-read reviews list. Meanwhile, the 2013 Buick Encore compact crossover — which Cars.com reviewer Kelsey Mays said stuffs a whole lot of refinement and features into a tiny package — debuted big at No. 3.

Check out what was popular this week:

1. 2014 Subaru Forester
2. 2013 Toyota RAV4
3. 2013 Buick Encore
4. 2013 Ford Fusion
5. 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe
6. 2013 Ford Escape
7. 2013 Honda Accord
8. 2014 Mazda CX-5
9. 2013 Toyota Avalon
10. 2013 Nissan Pathfinder

Most-Read Car Reviews of the Week

It's like when Rocky made Ivan Drago bleed in "Rocky IV," proving the Soviet boxer was not a machine and could, indeed, be defeated. Although far from symbolizing the fall of Cold War-era communism, the 2013 Toyota RAV4's defeat after a three-month reign atop our most-read reviews list is, nonetheless, a glorious victory for our new champ, the 2014 Subaru Forester. Meanwhile, the 2013 Toyota Avalon returns to the top 10 this week at No. 9, and the 2013 Honda Civic debuts in the bottom spot.

Check out what was popular this week:

1. 2014 Subaru Forester
2. 2013 Toyota RAV4
3. 2013 Honda Accord
4. 2013 Ford Fusion
5. 2013 Ford Escape
6. 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe
7. 2014 Mazda CX-5
8. 2013 Nissan Pathfinder
9. 2013 Toyota Avalon
10. 2013 Honda Civic