$46,000 Sport Sedan Challenge: By the Numbers

It wasn't hard for the 2013 BMW 3 Series to win over our critics at our latest Challenge. The sedan was exceptionally well-balanced on the track and around town and was overall a blast to drive. It was when the tests came down to hard numbers, though, that the 3 Series separated itself from the pack.

We put each of the six contenders through an approximately 180-mile mpg route that included surface roads and highway driving across Southern California. We also tested each of the car's zero-to-60 and quarter-mile times as well as braking distance on the drag strip.

The 3 Series kept delivering the best numbers, no matter what the test.

Cars.com, USA Today, 'MotorWeek' $46,000 Sport Sedan Challenge

Cars.com has teamed up with our partners at USA Today and "MotorWeek" for the past three years to compare the most popular car categories on the market. We've tackled compacts, compact crossovers, midsize sedans and even minivans.

Finally, we found a segment that gave us an excuse to rent a racetrack for a day: the luxury sport sedan.

Cars.com/USA Today/ "MotorWeek" $46,000 Sport Sedan Challenge

We first thought up the grouping when both BMW and Mercedes-Benz announced their entry-level versions of the 3 Series and C-Class would switch from six-cylinders to turbocharged four-cylinders like Audi's A4. Then a short while later Cadillac introduced the ATS and its turbocharged model as well.

We rounded out the group with the Acura TL — with a V-6 — and the Volvo S60 with a turbocharged five-cylinder and hit the road to California for a few days of testing on area roads, the track and the drag strip.

Find out which car bested the field — most handedly — and let us know what you think in the comment section below.

2014 Toyota Highlander Video

With the 2014 Highlander, Toyota says it has addressed shortcomings that led to a fifth-place finish in our $37,000 SUV Challenge. The popular SUV debuted at the 2013 New York International Auto Show, and Cars.com reviewer Kelsey Mays says its improvements include a higher-quality interior with touch-point padding and upgraded tech such as standard Bluetooth connectivity and a backup camera. While once-stingy cargo room has improved, Mays notes the Highlander still trails competitors in that department.

More 2013 New York Auto Show Coverage

Exterior updates to the longer, wider SUV include a more vertical front end with a chrome strip running between the headlights and through the grille as well as RAV4-like taillights. The new Highlander is set to hit dealerships in early 2014. Check out the video below.

Most-Watched Videos of the Week

In the 2013 BMW M5 video, Cars.com reviewer Joe Bruzek notes the high-performance sedan's class-consistent "big engine, big brakes, big wheels." The video put up commensurately big numbers, landing in the top spot among the most watched of the week. That knocked previous champ, the $26,000 Midsize Sedan Showdown video, to No. 3 while PickupTrucks.com's peek at Chevy's and GMC's new heavy-duty trucks for 2014 held its ground in second place. Check out the M5 video above and see which others were popular this week:

• 1. 2013 BMW M5
• 2. First Look: 2014 Chevrolet Silverado and 2014 GMC Sierra
• 3. Cars.com/USA Today/MotorWeek $26,000 Midsize Sedan Shootout
• 4. 2013 Subaru XV Crosstrek
• 5. 2013 Toyota RAV4

Most-Watched Videos of the Week

It was a something of a comeback for the Honda Accord when the 2013 model took first place in the $26,000 Midsize Sedan Showdown following its previous generation's fifth-place finish in the 2010 contest; judges said it goes to show what an automaker can accomplish with a sincere redesign. Piggybacking on the Accord's success, the Showdown's video is the most watched of the week. Check out that video above and see which other videos were popular this week:

• 1. Cars.com/USA Today/MotorWeek $26,000 Midsize Sedan Shootout
• 2. First Look: 2014 Chevrolet Silverado and 2014 GMC Sierra
• 3. Raptor vs. Ram Runner: Head to Head
• 4. 2013 Subaru XV Crosstrek
• 5. Icon D200 at 2012 SEMA

Top 10 Most-Watched Videos of the Year

The end of another review- and video-packed year at Cars.com is approaching. Our most popular video of 2012 comes from sister-site PickupTrucks.com and features the Ford Raptor SVT and the Mopar Ram Runner duking it out in the desert. In the video, professional off-road racer Chad Ragland and PickupTrucks.com editor Mark Williams test the trucks' limits on the rugged terrain of Ocotillo Wells, Calif., in a first-time duel to determine which would emerge victorious once the dust settled.

Check out that video above and see what other videos were popular in 2012:

1. Raptor vs. Ram Runner: Head to Head
2. 2013 Ford Fusion
3. 2013 Honda Accord Coupe
4. 2013 SRT Viper First Live Exhaust Note
5. 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe
6. 2013 Nissan Altima
7. 2013 Cadillac ATS
8. 2012 PickupTrucks.com Midsize Shootout
9. 2013 Chevrolet Traverse
10. Mopar Ram Runner: Sights & Sounds

Honda Dominates Cars.com's 2012 Face-offs

Pitted against competitors in three of the most bustling auto-sales segments today, Honda prevailed in Cars.com's 2012 head-to-head face-offs, emerging as the last brand standing. The 2013 Honda Accord, 2012 Honda Fit and 2012 Honda CR-V earned the automaker a flawless victory in Cars.com's trio of challenges, including the $26,000 midsize-sedan, $16,000 subcompact and $25,000 compact-SUV challenges. In each face-off, judged by a panel of five experts plus a real-world family, Honda averaged a nearly 26-point lead over the runner-up, including a very narrow nine-point lead in the competitive midsize-sedan showdown.

Check out the links below to revisit the scores of Cars.com's 2012 faceoffs:

$16,000 Subcompact Shootout: Overview
$25,000 Compact SUV Shootout: Overview
$26,000 Midsize Sedan Shootout: Overview

The Cars.com $26,000 Midsize Sedan Showdown

It's been two and a half years since we conducted our very first multi-car comparison with USA Today and "Motorweek." That showdown featured eight midsize family sedans competing against each other, with the Hyundai Sonata taking first and the Ford Fusion coming in last.

A lot has changed in that amount of time, with four of the six contenders in this year's contest sporting completely new designs.

How did they do?

Read the full showdown to find out.

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Cars.com $26,000 Midsize Sedan Showdown: Mileage Results

We took six of the top-selling, most fuel-efficient cars in the U.S. and pitted them against each other. How’d they do in our mileage drive?

While Nissan's redesigned 2013 Altima may have the highest EPA-estimated mileage rating among family sedans, its trip computer had the largest discrepancy with our calculations at the pump. After a 185-mile loop, the Altima's trip computer read 4.38 mpg above our calculations — far higher than the variances we observed for the 2013 Ford Fusion, 2013 Honda Accord, 2013 Hyundai Sonata, 2013 Kia Optima and 2012 Toyota Camry. The Altima won the day's trip-computer mileage with an observed 35.9 mpg, but its calculated pump mileage — 31.52 mpg — landed it a third-place finish behind the Camry and Accord.

Cars.com/USA Today/MotorWeek $26,000 Midsize Sedan Showdown

We took six contenders on a daylong mileage loop in mixed city/highway conditions. Per our usual mileage-challenge procedures, we began and ended at the same gas pump, swapped drivers over roughly equal chunks of seat time, kept windows and sunroofs closed and avoided cruise control. With cool temperatures and low humidity, we kept air conditioning off this time.

At day's end, our calculated pump mileage amounted to less than 1 mpg difference from what the trip computers read for five of the six cars, but the Altima's was off by 4.38 mpg. Why the discrepancy?

Compact SUV Shootout Family Buys Honda CR-V

The Honda CR-V won Cars.com's $25,000 Compact SUV Shootout earlier this year, and the automaker just won again on a smaller scale when the Shootout's test family, Nicholas and Erin Ravelingeen, recently purchased a 2013 Honda CR-V.

"All around, the Honda just felt like the best fit for us ... because of the styling and mostly because of the reliability factor," Erin said in a phone interview. "It didn't hurt that it was comfortable and good looking."

During the Shootout, the Ravelingeens happened to be in-market shoppers who wanted to replace their aging Chevy Tracker. They examined and test-drove the six competitors and shared their preferences with the judges.

After spending a day test-driving the SUVs, they thought the CR-V was the best fit for their family. Once they saw the Shootout results, which were published on Cars.com and in USA Today, "it really solidified our decision," Erin said.