Luxury Models Dominate Best Interiors List

Luxury carmakers accounted for six of the vehicles on this year’s 10 Best Interiors list selected by WardsAuto.

The previous high for luxury marques recognized by Wards was three. This year’s total is attributed to a growing number of luxury vehicles in the U.S. and the trend toward “aspirational” features, according to the online magazine.

The list's four non-luxury vehicles—the Chevrolet Camaro, Chrysler Pacifica, Honda Civic and Nissan Maxima—also have many premium appointments. Wards points to next-generation safety and telematic systems, ambient lighting and high-end materials as examples of the trend.

Of the 47 vehicles evaluated in this year’s competition, 19 are from premium brands. Audi alone had five eligible vehicles (A4, A6, Q7, S7 and TTS), while BMW and Lexus each had three.

Eight WardsAuto editors selected the winners based on aesthetics, design harmony, materials, ergonomics, safety, comfort, value and fit-and-finish. They also took into account the “user-friendliness” of the human-machine interface to see how effectively vehicle information is communicated.

To be eligible, an interior must be all-new or significantly redesigned. The winners and the sticker price of the vehicle tested are:

• Audi TTS ($58,500)
• BMW 7-Series ($129,200
• Cadillac XT5 ($63,800)
• Chevrolet Camaro ($46,100)
• Chrysler Pacifica ($48,500)
• Honda Civic ($27,300)
• Lexus RX ($53,000)
• Mercedes-Benz GLC ($54,400)
• Nissan Maxima ($38,800)
• Volvo XC90 ($84,000)