MotorTrend's revamped Buyer's Guideand just-launched Ultimate Car Rankingsare for both audiences: those who need car-buying informationnow, and those who have time to kill and are researching what to purchase when this whole mess clears up.

A few MotorTrend Ultimate rankings classes:

SUVs
Sedans
Trucks

Our use of the term "Ultimate" is not hype or platitude. Our proprietary algorithm sifts through dozens of scoring categories and reams of vehicle data to produce our in-segment rankings. It is more comprehensive than that of any existing publication or third-party consultancy.

2020 MotorTrend Car of the Year contenders 1

How do we know this? Because the team who created the basis for the rankings (and the ratings that underpin them) knows how the other, mostly subjective ranking systems fall short. We know our rankings are the best, most accurate, and most reliable.

No other automotive entity has the ability or means to perform the scale of year-round testing thatMotorTrenddoes. AsMotorTrendenters its eighth decade, with records that go all the way back, our testing team brings more than a century of real-world evaluation experience to the equation. If something isn't right with a car—be it a rattle, a rough shift, a gravelly engine, or cheap materials—our testers can suss it out in a heartbeat. We then incorporate our instrumented testing results, encompassing nearly 5,000 vehicles since 1997, so we can benchmark vehicles within their competitive sets.

But testing and evaluating vehicles is only one part of theMotorTrendUltimate Car Rankings. We consider crash test safety scores and technology as evaluated by the government's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and private-sector Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Active and passive safety technology—its availability but also its effectiveness—also plays a role in scoring.

Because everyone's pocketbook takes a hit when buying a car, our rankings also blend in statistics from MotorTrendaffiliate IntelliChoice—which has developed a formidable database of vehicle depreciation stretching back decades. A budget-priced car may seem like a bargain, but if it doesn't retain its value, it could cost more over time than a vehicle priced more at the time of purchase. We also compare EPA and EQUA Real MPG fuel economy data to determine if the car is a wallet buster at the pump.

Finally, because a car purchase is inherently visceral, we factor in exterior and interior design. You want to love your car, and styling has a lot to do with it. And although design is subjective, our team has a pretty good idea of what works and what doesn't. We have extensively interviewed former heads of design and engineering from automakers to help balance and define this category. We also consider design innovation, which covers practical details buyers will come to appreciate on a regular basis. Innovation comes in many forms, from an incredibly simple convertible-top mechanism or smart touches that made a compact SUV worthy of our SUV of the Year award.

With all these data points to work with, we brought in some brilliant statisticians to create an algorithm that is customizable across every vehicle segment—because let's face it, minivan buyers and sport sedan buyers have vastly different priorities as far as quarter-mile times and cargo space. The data prioritization is specific to each competitive set. What's more, the algorithm is updateable, based on new vehicles and technologies arriving in dealerships. Also, no ties.