The 6 Best Car Review Websites in 2020

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Today you have easy access to purchasing more types of vehicles than at any time in history. With only a few clicks, you can track down almost any make and model desired. At the same time, auto manufacturers now offer more safety and niche features on their vehicles for you to choose from than ever before. When all you want to find is the optimal car for your lifestyle, this amount of choice can be overwhelming.

To help you sort through all of that noise, various websites provide car reviews. These reviews often vary in both accuracy and quality with some sites providing incredible insights, and others barely taking the time to check the owner's manual. We took the time to review the reviewers and are happy to present to you the five best car review websites in 2020.

These websites are not ordered in any particular way and are not on this list based on their traffic numbers. The following sites offer some of the best car reviews on the internet today.

Car and Driver

The magazine version of Car and Driver was founded in 1955 as Sports Cars Illustrated. For the last 65 years, the company has built a reputation as one of the finest automobile reviewers and content creators in the country. Today the Car and Driver website continues the success of the classic magazine by providing long-form and in-depth car reviews.

Car and Driver has professional photography, well thought out articles, stat comparisons, and more. You can't go wrong consulting Car and Driver before your next big purchase. Probably the area that will most interest you as a buyer is the Editors' Choice Awards they conduct. Every year the experts at the magazine published an in-depth comparison of every major vehicle that came out in its class (hatchback, sedan, etc.).

MotorTrend

MotorTrend is another classic magazine that successfully made the transition to the internet with its integrity intact. Motortrend is actually older than Car and Driver by six years, as it was founded in September 1949. Today, this automobile specialty magazine runs one of the largest car review websites around.

MotorTrend also provides quality reviews and discussions on both old and new cars. Perhaps the most significant feature for buyers is the massive chunk of the website dedicated to the buyer’s guide. They make it incredibly easy to find the best possible vehicles for you broken down by style, price, MPG, and more! You can then directly compare that vehicle to its direct competitors.

Edmunds

There seems to be a trend here, as Edmunds was a newsstand publication from the 1960s that has grown into a nationally recognized resource. Like the MotorTrend site, Edmunds offers you a plethora of options with which to browse through vehicles. The website also has a vast number of in-depth reviews to help you make your purchasing decision.

While Edmunds may not have the best reviews when compared to Car and Driver, they have perhaps the most accessible system for narrowing down the right options for your next car.

Consumer Reports

While Consumer Reports is not an automobile specialist site, they have one of the best track records for providing unbiased reviews of all major products. Consumer Reports is an independent, nonprofit member organization, which means you can rest assured that the reports are not being influenced.

The Consumer Reports website has hundreds of highly trusted automobile reviews for you to utilize in your research. If something is sounding too good to be true, always double-check it with Consumer Reports.

Kelley Blue Book

Going all the way back to 1926, Kelley Blue Book has been a top name in the auto industry. Pretty much as long as America has had cars, Kelley Blue Book has been reviewing them. The modern iteration of KBB.com is full of car buying resources that continue on their tradition,

Even though the company is older than your Grandpa, they provide some of the best reviews for today’s vehicles and are the best resource for judging the value of a possible purchase. The annual awards they hand out are amongst the most desired in the industry.

J.D. Power

J.D. Power has roughly 800 professional analysts and consultants working around the globe to bring consumers the most up to date information and reviews regarding the automobile market. Another company that goes back decades, J.D. Power, has built itself a considerable name when it comes to providing sound advice and quality awards.

There is a reason so many car commercials reference awards given out by J.D. Power -it actually means something. The prizes they give for best in class, or whatever feature you are focusing on is a great place to start a car hunt.

How the Internet is Changing Car Purchasing

Looking at the 2019 Car Buyer Journey Study we can see that nearly 90% of all shoppers spend multiple hours online researching the vehicle they will buy -with mobile usage going up each year at an average 11%. These changes have led to manufacturers and dealers investing considerable resources into their online purchasing processes. As an online shopper, you are benefiting from the plethora of information now at your fingertips.

The trick is learning to sort through it all.

We have listed these websites in the hope is that you can begin the process of narrowing down your possible choices and then actively comparing and contrasting the features of your top picks. If done correctly, you could end up with the perfect vehicle for your lifestyle.

Trends show that people are taking less and less time finding their car. This likely means that the processes these sites provide have made it easier to find what you want, it may also reflect the "hurry up" culture we live in. Make sure you take the time to review such a large purchase properly.

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