U.S. News Names the 2021 Honda Insight as the Safest Small Car of 2021

by Gabrielle DeSantis

Honda is most known for vehicles like the Civic, the Ridgeline, and the ever-popular CR-V. Small sedans like the Honda Insight tend to fly under the radar, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth taking a look at. In fact, U.S. News thinks it’s the safest small car of 2021. 

The 2021 Honda Insight is the safest of the safe

The 2021 Honda Insight has so many standard safety features it’ll make you dizzy. For the price of $22,930 you’ll get a rearview camera, forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, road sign recognition, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, and driver drowsiness monitoring.

If that’s not enough for you, then blind-spot monitoring and parking sensors are also available at higher trim levels. 

There can be little doubt that this is all highly impressive, but the Insight isn’t done yet. It earned a 2021 Top Safety Pick+ from the IIHS. It’s also received a score of five out of five stars from the NHTSA. It doesn’t get much better than that, yet the 2021 Insight managed to do it again. 

There are so many features on the Honda Insight, it’s impossible to choose

RELATED: The 2021 Honda Insight Surprisingly Came Out on Top

Looking for a hybrid vehicle that gets excellent gas mileage, has a comfortable ride, user-friendly technology, and a quiet interior? The Honda Insight is it. Unless you have a bunch of toddlers in the back, in which case it’s probably not going to be quiet unless it’s nap time. 

The key to the 2021 Insight’s growing popularity is the incredible gas mileage it gets. Thanks to its four-cylinder engine and electric motor, the 2021 Honda Insight gets an astonishing 55 mpg city and 49 mpg highway. 

There are three trim levels, which may not seem like much when there are vehicles that have at least six, but Honda offers a lot. There is the base model LX, the middle EX, and the Touring, which is the top.

The LX offers a 5.0-inch LED screen, a USB port, and Bluetooth. The EX offers much more, such as blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, an 8-inch screen, more USB ports, an eight-speaker audio system, HD Radio, satellite radio, Apple CarPlay, and Android Auto.

The Touring, which starts at $29,040 offers the most bang for your buck. You’ll get leather-trimmed seats, power-adjustable front seats, heated front seats, a moonroof, dual-zone automatic climate control, a 10-speaker premium audio system, navigation, and a Wi-Fi hot spot.

Which vehicles ended up lower on the list?

Safety is becoming a major factor in whether a vehicle gets purchased, or whether it stays on the lot. There are some models like the Jeep Wrangler that consistently get poor crash test ratings, yet consumers continue to buy them. Very few vehicles can pull this off, however, making the Wrangler more of the exception as opposed to the rule.

With that being said, there are a lot of amazing sedans on the road now that are considered very safe. The Honda Insight had a lot of tough competition that gave it a real fight.

Toyota had the most vehicles on the list, which is no real surprise. The Toyota Prius, Prius Prime, Corolla, and the Corolla Hybrid had high scores but weren’t good enough to beat out the Insight.

The Honda Civic, the Insight’s more popular sibling, scored high enough to impress Consumer Reports and came in fourth place. The Subaru Impreza was third, and the Mazda3 came in second. While each comes with plenty of safety tech, none of them had enough to beat out the Honda Insight, which is finally carving a place out for itself.

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1 Reason to Choose the 2021 Nissan Murano Over the Honda Passport

by Gabrielle DeSantis

Just because a vehicle sells well doesn’t mean that it is necessarily the best option available. Although the Honda Passport is a popular choice that can be found on many lots, this SUV actually didn’t rank particularly well in testing done by Consumer Reports. If you’d like a similar SUV with better test scores, the 2021 Nissan Murano is an excellent choice. It also has one significant advantage over the Passport: a better infotainment system.

The 2021 Nissan Murano’s superior infotainment system

Although the Honda passport is a popular vehicle, it received an overall score of just 64 from Consumer Reports. One of the areas to receive critique is the infotainment system, which Consumer Reports calls “slow to respond.”

The Nissan Murano, on the other hand, has a much more intuitive infotainment system, according to Consumer Reports. In particular, test drivers praise the fact that this system features analog volume and tuning knobs rather than depending solely on a touchscreen, which can be difficult to operate while driving.

The Murano’s infotainment system also features a row of buttons on the screen. Consumer Reports found that this made it significantly easier to navigate the system and find the desired function.

Other areas where the 2021 Murano beats the Honda Passport

The Nissan Murano | WANG ZHAO/AFP via Getty Images

RELATED: The 2021 Honda Passport Remains the Company’s Worst SUV

While the Honda Passport only has an overall score of 64 from Consumer Reports, the Nissan Murano has a significantly higher score of 79. Consumer Reports praises the fact that the Murano comes standard with forward-collision warning, blind-spot warning, automatic emergency braking, and pedestrian detection.

Although the Passport does come standard with forward-collision warning and automatic emergency braking, blind-spot warning is only available as an option.

The Murano also has the Passport beat when it comes to predicted reliability. While the Passport has a predicted reliability rating of just 2/5, the Murano has a rating of 4/5. Finally, Consumer Reports praises the comfortable interior of the Murano, particularly noting the fact that it provides easy cabin access.

It is worth noting that the Passport and the Murano both have subpar predicted owner satisfaction ratings. Consumer Reports also takes points away from the Murano due to its low towing capacity, lack of agility, and poor rear and side visibility.

However, the Murano scores better than the Passport overall, and Consumer Reports found that it offers a superior driving experience.

Specs and additional features of the Nissan Murano

The 2021 Nissan Murano starts at $32,610. It features a 3.5-liter V6 engine that makes 260 hp and 240 lb-ft of torque. The Murano gets 20 miles per gallon in the city and 28 miles per gallon on the highway for a combined fuel economy of 23 miles per gallon.

Standard convenience features include push-button start, cruise control, and high beam assist. Without the optional moonroof, this SUV has 32.1 cubic feet of cargo space with the rear seat up, and 67 cubic feet of cargo space with the rear seat folded down.

Test drivers at Consumer Reports call the Murano’s ride “steady and absorbent,” stating that it performs well on highways and city streets. Inside the cabin, they praise the comfortable seats and generous amounts of rear legroom, even stating that the rear seat is roomy enough to be comfortable for adults.

Overall, while the Honda Passport sells well and isn’t necessarily a bad SUV, testing from Consumer Reports indicates that the Nissan Murano is likely to be the preferable choice for many buyers. If you’re on the hunt for a reliable, comfortable SUV that offers a significant amount of legroom and a very intuitive infotainment system, consider opting for the Murano.

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What Is Mazda Active Driving Display, and How Does It Work?

by Gabrielle DeSantis

If you’ve been shopping for a Mazda, you’ve likely noticed that many models offer a feature called the Mazda Active Driving Display. But what exactly does this feature do? Let’s delve into Mazda Active Driving Display to see how it works and which vehicles offer it.

What is the Mazda Active Driving Display?

According to Compass Mazda, Mazda Active Driving Display is a head-up display. This means that certain pertinent information will be projected directly onto the windshield within the driver’s line of sight. Head-up displays are a safety feature that is designed to help keep drivers’ eyes on the road, rather than needing to look away to find relevant information. 

MotorTrend states that head-up displays were formally a hallmark of luxury brands. However, this isn’t the case anymore. As more vehicles eschew analog components in favor of digital screens, convenience features like head-up displays are becoming increasingly common in luxury and mainstream vehicles alike.

There are two types of head-up displays currently on the market: the type that projects directly onto the windshield, and a more affordable version that simply projects onto a small plastic panel in front of the driver. Mazda Active Driving Display projects directly onto the windshield.

Displays that project onto the windshield are more versatile, as there is less of a space limit. This means that drivers are often able to choose the features they would like to see. Additionally, MotorTrend notes that head-up displays which project onto the windshield are slightly more convenient for the driver, as these are more directly in the driver’s line of sight.

It is worth noting, however, that displays that project onto the windshield tend to be more expensive. It can also be harder to see these displays if you are wearing polarized sunglasses, according to MotorTrend.

The features built into this display

The Mazda3 | Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg via Getty Images

RELATED: Is a Head-Up Display an Essential Car Feature?

The Mazda Active Driving Display will show the vehicle’s speed and cruise control settings by default. It also works in tandem with Mazda’s infotainment system. If you program your route into this system, the head-up display will show your next turn on the windshield.

However, Compass Mazda points out that this navigation display will not work if you try to pair it with other navigation apps — it only functions if you program your route into Mazda’s infotainment system.

The Active Driving Display also pairs with Mazda’s optional suite of safety features, i-ACTIVSENSE. If you have this set of safety features, the Active Driving Display will show warnings and alerts from systems such as blind-spot monitoring, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, and smart city brake support.

Finally, the Mazda Active Driving Display can provide warnings if stop signs are approaching. It can also show speed limits for the area you are driving in, although this will only work properly if the system has access to the most up-to-date information about the local area.

Vehicles that come with Mazda Active Driving Display

According to Fontana Mazda, there are six 2020 Mazda models that offer Mazda Active Driving Display. It is important to note, however, that this feature is only available on certain trim levels.

The 2020 models that offer this feature are: the Mazda3 Premium trim; the CX-3; the CX-30 Premium trim; the CX-5 Grand Touring, Reserve, and Signature trims; the Mazda6 Grand Touring, Reserve, and Signature trims; and the Mazda CX-9 Grand Touring and Signature trims.

Although it is not an essential feature, Mazda Active Driving Display offers an additional level of safety and convenience. By displaying key information on the windshield, head-up displays like this help keep drivers’ eyes focused on the road while traveling.

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The 2021 Kia Telluride Is 1 of the Peaceful SUVs to Buy Once Again

by Gabrielle DeSantis

If you’re driving a bunch of kids around, the last thing you need is extra noise from your SUV. Luckily, if you have a 2021 Kia Telluride, the noise won’t be coming from the vehicle. For the second year in a row, the Kia Telluride has been recognized as one of the quietest SUVs available.

The quietest SUVs to buy

Both Consumer Reports and U.S. News & World Report have named the 2021 Kia Telluride as one of the quietest SUVs. Consumer Reports examined wind, road, engine, and tire noises and named the Telluride one of the quietest midsize SUVs. U.S. News listed it as one of the quietest of any size SUV. Consumer Reports also named it the quietest SUV for 2020.

SUVs have a boxy shape and are higher off the road than cars, so they tend to create more wind noise than cars. The Telluride’s engine only has a low hum and limited road or wind noise. Consumer Reports says that “it’s quieter than most of its competitors in the class.”

The interior of the 2021 Kia Telluride

The Kia Telluride | Michael Kovac/Getty Images for Turner Sports

RELATED: The 2021 Telluride Isn’t the Only Kia SUV Consumer Reports Recommends

The 2021 Kia Telluride has a lot to recommend it in addition to its hushed sounds. The Telluride was a new vehicle for the 2020 model year, so its interior has a fresh, modern design with plenty of standard features. U.S. News says the interior “verges on luxurious.”

It provides high-quality materials even in the base trim. Synthetic leather seats are standard, but heated and ventilated leather-upholstered front and rear seats are available. It also has lots of space for passengers and cargo.

The Telluride comes standard with keyless entry, push-button start, and remote start and has easy-to-use controls. Optional features include a sunroof, dual-zone automatic climate control, and a hands-free power liftgate.

The infotainment system has an 8-inch touchscreen and is compatible with both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. A 10.2-inch touchscreen is also available. Standard features also include a six-speaker stereo system, satellite radio, HD Radio, Bluetooth, and five USB ports.

An additional USB is available as are a 10-speaker Harman Kardon stereo system, navigation, wireless device charging, and an intercom.

Is the 2021 Kia Telluride a good SUV?

The Telluride is great to drive, and it earned an outstanding 97 out of 100 score on the Consumer Reports road test. Consumer Reports also rates it five out of five for both predicted reliability and predicted owner satisfaction.

It has a 3.8-liter V6 engine, generating 291 hp and 262 lb-ft of torque. It’s paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission. Front-wheel drive is standard, but all-wheel drive is an option. It’s also able to tow up to 5,000 pounds, says U.S. News. It isn’t the most fuel-efficient SUV, though.

The Telluride also has excellent crash test ratings and comes standard with a number of advanced safety features. That includes a rearview camera, driver drowsiness monitoring, adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, forward-collision warning with pedestrian detection, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, rear parking sensors, and a rear-seat alert.

A few additional safety features are available: a head-up display, automatic high-beam headlights, front parking sensors, and a surround-view parking camera system.

The 2021 Telluride has a starting price between $32,190 and $44,390. It also has Kia’s long warranty. The Telluride earned the 2021 Best 3-Row SUV for Families award from U.S. News.

The 2021 Kia Telluride is a strong contender for anyone looking for a midsize three-row SUV. The peace and quiet of the interior is one more plus that it offers along with value, comfort, and a nice ride.

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