Awards & Accolades

• 2006 Lexus GS 300

• SmartMoney (October, 2005)

The frenzied auto marketplace has made it more difficult than ever to find value. We did it for you: Looking at more than 100 new models, we sorted through features, price, satisfaction and ownership costs to find the best car for your money.

The following is excerpted:

LUXURY SEDAN Lexus GS 300

When Howard Grandier headed to a Lexus dealership earlier this year to test-drive the maker's entry-level ES sedan, the pricier GS caught his eye. "I never thought I'd spend that much on a car," says the Washington, D.C., information technology manager. "But as soon as I saw it, I was like, 'Wow, that looks sexy.'" "Sexy" isn't a word you often hear applied to any sedans, let alone Lexus sedans, and until this year, the middle-child GS-wedged between the ES and the top-of-the-line LS in price-was perhaps the dowdiest of the bunch. That's all changed thanks to a redesign that gives it a sleek new exterior, a 245-horsepower V-6 engine and a six-speed automatic transmission. This year the GS also borrows several high-tech options from the LS for the first time, like laser-adaptive cruise control, which maintains a constant distance from the car in front of you; headlights that swivel as you round a curve; and a precollision system that tightens seat belts, adjusts the throttle and brakes when it senses an impending crash. And even with these extras, the GS 300's $45,000 sticker price is still roughly $2,500 less than that of the second-place BMW 530i. After five years the difference in ownership costs is even higher-nearly $8,000.

HOW WE RANKED THEM

The Total Quality Index (TQI) from Strategic Vision, a 1 to 1,000 rating of new owners' overall satisfaction.

Cost of ownership: what the car will cost you over five years in fuel, maintenance, repairs, finance and depreciation.

Substance:features, extras and our own impressions from test-drives.

Reprinted and excerpted from the October 2005 issue of SmartMoney. Lexus had no influence on the editorial content of this article. SmartMoney does not endorse any product or service of Lexus. Reprinted by permission of SmartMoney.

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