CHICAGO, July 28, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Cars.com,
the premier online resource for buying and selling new and used
cars, has named the 2015 Volkswagen
GTI the winner of its first-ever "Cheap Speed Challenge." The
challenge focused on compact coupes, sedans and hatchbacks that
cost less than $30,000 and come with
features popular among drivers looking for performance in a new
car. Challenge contenders were the 2014 Fiat 500 Abarth, 2014 Ford
Fiesta ST, 2014 Hyundai Veloster Turbo, 2014 Kia Forte SX, 2014
Nissan Juke NISMO, 2014 Scion FR-S, 2014 Subaru WRX and the 2015
Volkswagen GTI.
"Not only does the all-new 2015 Volkswagen GTI offer the best
performance bang for the buck, but it is also one of the most
comfortable," said Joe Wiesenfelder,
Executive Editor at Cars.com. "The GTI outperformed most cars in
just about every test we conducted. Also, unlike some of the other
cheap speed competitors, the GTI offers an impressively roomy and
high-quality interior in addition to being seriously
fun-to-drive."
Experts from Cars.com, MotorWeek, USA Today and an actual car shopper in the
market for an affordable performance car tested the eight
contenders over a five-day period. "We typically test cars for
three days during our multi-car challenges, but the athletic-nature
of these cars required some additional performance-focused tests on
racetracks," said Wiesenfelder.
Tests included:
- Zero-to-60-mph times and quarter-mile times and speeds
- 60 mph to zero braking distances
- Professional road course testing on a closed track
- 200 miles of driving on varying roads to test each car for
real-world fuel economy
- Round-robin driving where each expert evaluated each car on the
same street route, back-to-back, to gather overall impressions on
drive, features and comfort
- Testing by a consumer in the market for a new car who evaluated
each car in the same categories as the experts
"Shoppers should know that performance doesn't always have to
come at an exorbitant cost," said Wiesenfelder. "The competitors in
our Cheap Speed Challenge are actually relatively affordable given
their performance chops. Cheap speed also doesn't come in one set
shape or size as demonstrated by our eight competitors, which means
performance doesn't always jeopardize practicality."
Full "Cheap Speed Challenge" result can be found here
or at blogs.cars.com.
ABOUT CARS.COM
Cars.com is an award-recognized online destination for car
shoppers that offers information from experts and consumers to help
buyers formulate opinions on what to buy, where to buy and how much
to pay for a car. Cars.com offers thousands of new and used vehicle
listings, expert and consumer reviews, side-by-side comparison and
build and price tools, photo galleries, videos, unbiased editorial
content and many other resources. As the 2013 "Highest Ranked
Third-Party Automotive Mobile Site" by J.D. Power, Cars.com puts
millions of car buyers in control of their shopping process with
the information they need to make stress-free buying decisions.
Launched in June 1998, Cars.com is a
division of Classified Ventures LLC, which is owned by leading
media companies, including A.H. Belo
(NYSE: AHC), Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI), The McClatchy Company
(NYSE: MNI), Tribune Company (OTC:TRBAA) and The Washington
Post Company (NYSE: WPO).
SOURCE Cars.com