The Irish Examiner's top cars of 2023
Jeep Avenger
Welcome to the annual extravaganza that is Examiner Motoring’s Cars Of The Year awards where I look back at the machines I have driven over the past 12 months and pick those that stood out in the various categories.
Such matters are, of course, extremely subjective and some of the picks will therefore surprise, delight or infuriate readers, but they are what they are and while the picks are not necessarily the best cars available in each segment, they are the best that emerged in yet another hectic motoring year.
By necessity the cars selected here only come from the list of those we actually drove in the past 12 months, so there are some cars which are actually on sale right now, but which we have not yet driven – such as the new BMW 5 Series and the electric i5 and the new Renault Clio have not been considered because we will not drive them until early next year.
But, having driven over 60 new cars this year, there is still plenty to consider and many of them are deserving of much praise, but sadly not everyone can walk away with one of our much-sought-after awards.
And, as the industry evolves and with electric motoring increasingly to the fore in everyone’s thoughts, the awards have themselves moved on to reflect the new reality, as you will see below. Enjoy the read.
There are heaps of great small cars out there – such as the Suzuki Swift, the Volkswagen Polo, the SEAT Ibiza, the Skoda Fabia and the late, lamented Ford Fiesta the last of which rolled off the production lines this year, but the best one we drove in the past 12 months was the Toyota Aygo X, which is a sightly revamped version of the regular Aygo but is a fantastic little urban car with a diminutive revvy 1.0 litre three-cylinder engine and a tremendously practical character.
This could have been a relatively anonymous little car, but Toyota – not always known for its design chops – has made this into a very individual and visually outstanding little car with a neat line in interior décor. It’s great to drive too.
The Ford Focus might seem like a curious choice given that it has been with us for many years now, but a brief revamp in the middle of the year reminded us what a fantastic thing it is.
And, with Ford having announced that the Focus is to be discontinued next year, we would recommend people to get one while they still can.
The Focus was – and still is – one of the best handling cars in the class and its on-road capabilities are on a par with much bigger and more expensive machines. It is also very comfortable and well equipped, not to mention economic and affordable. This is a classic of its genre and it will be sadly missed when it’s gone.
Well, technically neither the Peugeot 408 or the Citroen C5-X are saloons and both could be classed as being in the vanguard of a new era of car – what might be termed as non-SUV, SUVs.
In reality, it is a fastback saloon with an SUV ride height.
The two are essentially the same car with only minor design tweaks and badging differentiating them, but both are hugely comfortable and really good to drive, especially so over long distances.
Electric versions of both are imminent, but for the moment there are PHEV and 1.2 petrol options available and it is the latter we favour, but these cars are definitely part of a new trend and as such, both are very good indeed.
Yaris Cross Toyota
Much bigger than the regular Yaris and that gives it better back seat room and a decent boot. We’re still not mad about the 1.5 Hybrid engine which can be screechy and unrefined when asked questions, but the package as a whole is a winner.
Another of those non-SUV, SUVs the Austral sort of came out of nowhere to display more of Renault’s new-found adventurous demeanour when it comes to exterior and interior design.
Under the hood, it has an unusual hybrid system which many will not find to their liking, but the car itself is excellent.
It has an unusual hybrid system which takes a bit of getting used to, but it is decent to drive and is very economical. The interior is the best Renault – which has been making great strides in this department in recent times – has produced to date with an excellent infotainment system.
This is another truly good-looking car as well and a portent of other excellent things to come from the French company.
A lot of contenders here from the Audi Q8, the BMW X5 and X7, as well as the Mercedes GLE, but the stand-out for us this year was the new Range Rover both in Sport and standard forms.
Stunning on the eye and a cracker to drive, as well as being equipped with the sort of luxury you’d expect from the brand.
These new vehicles were standard setters before these latest models arrived and they are even more so now. The Sport is great on-road and will go anywhere and is very well-appointed.
The Range Rover itself doesn’t need to pretend to be anything as it simply does its job as a luxury SUV that will also climb high mountains and ford big rivers with astonishing elan and all the while the driver and passengers are cossetted in the sort of luxury the Royal family might expect. And, of course, the Royals use them too. A tad expensive, sure, but then if you’ve got the cash why not spoil yourself.
Not too many outstanding contenders this particular year, but one does stand out – the BMW M2. S
lightly larger than before and more powerful, the M2 is as malevolent as a proper ‘M’ car should be with rip-roaring performance and astonishing road holding.
For all that, it will also tootle about doing everyday things without batting an eyelid, but once you get that three-litre straight six twin turbo singing, boy is it something. This is the sort of rock ape car which is now slowly but surely vanishing from view.
Sadly it is not just vanishing over the horizon with an angry howl, but vanishing altogether as a victim of the puritanical paranoia which will eventually see a world devoid of such joyous things. If you’ve got a liking for fast cars with magnificent soundtracks, then get one while you still can – and cherish it.
We had two excellent pick-ups this year, both somewhat sports-oriented. The Toyota Hilux GR is a little bit watery in performance terms but still as capable as ever in terms of its off-roading skills.
The ‘GR’ handle might persuade you that it is a performance beast, but it is more of a trim level than anything else, which was a little disappointing.
But then there was the Ford Raptor, which is a version of the Ford Ranger, but what a version. With a garish paint scheme, a V6 three-litre engine, this thing is almost the personification of evil.
Having a natural aversion to pick-ups, I was not truly expecting much from this, but it was an absolute hoot to drive. It might be that any normal person would have to wear a wig, fake mustache and sunglasses to hide their identity while at the wheel of the Raptor, but they’ll still have a ball driving it. Amazing thing.
This is a rapidly evolving field – as are all the electric segments, so rapid is the development of the genre – so what’s good right now might not be so good next week.
That being the case we were astonished by what was on offer with the Jeep Avenger.
It was the European Car of The Year last year, which was something of a shock because people on this side of the pond tend to eschew American cars, but as the Avenger was largely developed in tandem with Fiat, it was more European than most and will not, actually sold in America at all.
With a real-world range of about 375 km, a genuine off-road ability despite no four-wheel drive – yet – and a happy demeanour, the Avenger ticked pretty much every box. It is fun to drive, handles really well and is fairly cheap by electric standards This was one the most pleasant surprises of the year and right up there at the top of the pile.
An increasingly crowded field in this segment, but once again Renault came up trumps with the Megane E-Tech. Like the Austral, it looks great inside and out and while its 300 km range mightn’t sound fantastic, the 22kW charging system is a gem and speeds up the process remarkably, giving the car much greater appeal than might seem to be the case.
Renault has just chopped the list price by three-and-a-half grand, which makes it more appealing again. The French giant is definitely upping its game and with this car you have all the evidence you need of that fact.
The Mercedes EQS – in both saloon and SUV formats – is a tour de force in terms of luxury – the interior would embarrass many pricey hotels such is its opulence.
It is a bit truck-ish to drive, however, so that’s why we look elsewhere – but not too far away.
Sure, the BMW i7 is a fine beast both in stature and ability, but the Mercedes EQS SUV is the cat's pyjamas. If the ‘S’ wallows around too much for serious drivers to take it on board, the EQE SUV is the opposite and is just the ticket for demanding pilots who also care for the environment.
It’s bloody expensive though (the tester we had was nearly the same price as the EQS) and so the one we’re plumping for is the EQS saloon which is a magnificent piece of kit. Great to drive and wonderful to live with, it is quite the thing.
As you can see from the above, there are a number of wonderful contenders, not least such as the Mercedes EQE and the BMW M2, but the one that really made a mark in these quarters was the Jeep Avenger.
Right now it has pretty much everything going for it. It’s great to drive and live with, it has a great range and it’s remarkably cheap for an electric of any description.
It is also a portent of what is to come from Fiat and Jeep m- as well as the rest of the remarkable Stellantis Group’s stable of marques, which now includes Peugeot, Citroen, DS, Fiat, Alfa, Opel, Jeep and Maserati.
But this car, this year, gave us a lot of fun, looked great, has top-line technology and is value for money.
There it is then, our overall Car Of The Year is the Jeep Avenger.
Happy New Year and looking forward to seeing what 2024 brings.