BEST CARS OF 2010 (PART 1)

1.     The year 2010 was one of the busiest the motor industry has seen in recent years. Coming in at the back of a dismal 2009 in terms of sales, 2010 gave us promises of an upturn as well as fresh, cutting-edge products to lure buyers back into empty showroom floors.

Here now is a list of cars, in alphabetical order, that really tickled our hearts, challenged our brains and made us glad to be alive. Although we drove over 100 different models during the course of 2010, we’ve had to whittle down our list to only 24. We consider these to be the finest of the crop and a brief description of why we loved each car follows. We will publish 5 per day.

Audi A8

We agree, it’s not the most exciting car to look at in any class. Frankly we think it’s quite a boring design which has, unfortunately, spilled over into the all-new A6. Nevertheless you can never ignore firstly, the badge. Secondly it handles like an A4 and is decked out inside like a Bentley. We’d really like to see more engines too to match this amazing chassis.

AAudi RS 5

Although our drive was limited to the Khalayami race track facility, it was enough for us to fall for this subtle four-ring slayer with quattro AWD and 331kW of V8 push. Perhaps not as dramatic as the stupendous RS 4 before it, yet the RS 5 fits snuggly inside the realm of sports cars and everyday drivers. Great combo.

BBMW M3 Frozen Edition

Mzansi wasn’t on the list of countries to get the M3 GTS, but we were consoled with a limited number of M3 Frozen Edition units. Utterly fearless, the car is an opera production on four wheels, and sounds like three brass bands in full song. Probably not the best daily commute because of its severe sportiness, as an alternative weekend blaster it hits the spot every time.

BBMW 530d

This is one of three (soon to be four) really beautiful BMWs in the market today. Our chosen model combines looks, driving agility, economy and luxury into one unforgettable experience. It is of course plenty pricey and comes with an options list as long as Mandela’s prison sentence. Yet one can’t help but feel satisfied even with a baseline model in one’s hands.

BBMW X1 xDrive23d

At first we weren’t quite sure what to make of the X1’s lack of ride height but the more we drove it, the more we realised that it was born of urban blood and would die as an urbanite. Sure it can tackle the gravels of the world without too much sweat, but its core audience would never dream of putting it under such conditions on purpose. Place it on tar and it rewards with stunning feedback. Drive long distances and it never runs dry. A true revelation.