Best New Crossovers of the Year

Lincoln Mkc Crossover
One of the best new introductions of the car show season: The Lincoln MKC Crossover

Shopping the Car Shows and Finding Lots of Crossovers To Love

Two car shows in two weeks is enough to make a girl really need a pedicure. Especially when we love, love, love so many cars on display and want to take them all home with us. In January we attended the Detroit Auto Show and the Washington, DC Auto Show and on our to-do list was to find the best new crossovers. Since the car shows are a huge shopping mall, we go to shop. So, from the two shows, here are the crossovers you should look at when you hit the auto show and think about what you want to see in your driveway next (our favorite sedans are reviewed here):

Mercedes-Benz Gla 260
Isn’t she cute? A slimmed down crossover from Mercedes-Benz and priced right: The GLA 260 starts at about $30,000

Mercedes-Benz GLA 260 Crossover ($30,000+): Last year Mercedes-Benz got tons of attention for launching a $30,000 sedan, the CLA. Some people thought the automaker had lowered its standards, but others (like us) applaud the motion; by making your brand accessible, the car will appeal to a whole new breed of customers who might not have considered it. Sometimes you have to teach your customer how to appreciate what you do so well. Next step: The GLA Crossover, which will roll out in late 2014. Not only one of the best looking cars on the whole floor, but it fits a lot of needs, too: muscle-y for all weather and terrain (and by terrain, we mean pot-holed city streets, too), smaller than your standard Mom-Car SUV, flexible interior space and oh, yeah, it’s a Mercedes-Benz.

 

Audi Q3 Crossover
Audi’s Q3: Great things in small packages

Audi Q3 and Allroad e-Tron ($30,000+): Another great entry in the sporty SUV category, and again, a major reason to love it: It’s an Audi. Beautiful lines, panoramic sunroof, great technology, this is an urban muscle car that protects you from the indignities of the road and small enough to park anywhere. As a concept—not currently available but maybe some day, and gives you an idea of what their engineers are up to—Audi rolled out the Allroad e-Tron, a smaller version of the Q3 (or at least it looks like it to us) that is fully electric; owners would be able to charge up in the garage and take it out over hill and dale.

Audi Allroad E-Tron
A concept car that we really, really hope makes it to market: the Allroad e-Tron, a charge-and-go SUV crossover

Lincoln MKC ($34,000+): Lincoln is listening to you! They have come up with what is without a doubt the best handbag spot in any car on the market: A carved out cradle in the center console (where the gear shift had been) is the perfect place for a handbag, large or small. And then, there’s the rest of the car, which is pretty nice too: a crossover with flexible space, an SUV-like drive and the Ford Eco-Boost engine which typically improves fuel economy while boosting engine power. And yes, it comes in purple.

Lincoln Mkc Handbag Spot
This may be the most exciting news of the year: Lincoln moved the gearshift inthe new MKC crossover  to make room for your handbag. Look how nicely it fits right into the console! Thank you Lincoln!

Nissan Rogue ($24,000+): OK, not exactly new, but with a fabulous new feature that makes this crossover irresistible: A third row. Oh yeah. Never again take two cars when you can take one, take the whole gang to the movies, let your kids each sit in their own row. The third row is a convenience row, mind you, and when it’s up you lose cargo space, but when you need it, it’s amazing to have.

Nissan Rogue With Third Row
The 2014 Nissan Rogue features a third row and seats seven

Disclosure: We attended the Detroit Auto Show as a guest of GeneralMotors, which provided travel and accommodations, and the Washington DC Auto Show as a guest of Nissan, which provided travel and accommodations. Opinions, gathering of information and exhaustion was all our own. 

Scotty Reiss
Scotty Reiss

Journalist, entrepreneur and mom. Expertise includes new cars, family cars, 3-row SUVs, child passenger car seats and automotive careers and culture. A World Car Awards juror and member of the steering committee, Scotty likes to say the automotive business found her, rather than her finding it. But recognizing the opportunity to give voice to powerful female consumers and create a voice to match their spending power, her mission became to empower women as car buyers and owners. A career-long journalist, she has written for the New York Times, Town & Country, Adweek and co-authored the book Stew Leonard, My Story, a biography of the founder of the iconic grocery company Stew Leonard’s. Her love of cars started when her father insisted she learn to change the oil in her MG Midget, but now it mostly plays out in the many road trips taken with her family.

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