WASHINGTON, Nov. 15, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — U.S. News & World Report, the global authority in rankings and consumer advice, today announced winners of the 2017 Best Vehicle Brand awards. The annual awards recognize brands with top-performing vehicles in four major categories: SUVs – including Crossovers and Minivans – Cars, Trucks and Luxury.

Last year’s winning brands continue to dominate in 2017:

Best SUV Brand: Honda
With comfortable interiors and family-friendly features, Honda leads the Best SUV Brand category. Honda’s lineup includes the Honda CR-V, Honda HR-V, Honda Odyssey and the redesigned Honda Pilot, all of which rank at or near the top of their classes in Compact SUVs, Subcompact SUVs, Minivans and Midsize SUVs, respectively.

Best Car Brand: Mazda
For the second year, Mazda claims the No. 1 spot. Mazda’s lineup of cars, including the Mazda3 and MX-5 Miata, earn positive reviews for well-made interiors and driving dynamics.

Best Truck Brand: Ford
Ford’s F-150 line of pickups have fuel-saving engine designs, some of the best payload and tow ratings in the class, easy handling and roomy cabins.

Best Luxury Brand: Porsche
In recent years Porsche has expanded its lineup to include the Panamera, a super-luxury sedan, as well as the Cayenne and Macan SUVs. The models live up to the Porsche’s performance-driven heritage while also providing the rich interiors and connectivity features that today’s luxury buyers demand.

“Consumers have an overwhelming number of factors to consider when comparing cars,” says Jamie Page Deaton, managing editor of U.S. News Best Cars. “The Best Vehicle Brand awards simplify the process by giving people guidance on the top brands in the categories that matter to them.”

The Best Vehicle Brands methodology is an objective, analysis-driven assessment of quality across all of a brand’s offerings within the four categories (SUVs, Cars, Trucks and Luxury). Brand ratings are based on the U.S. News Best Cars overall scores for each vehicle, which incorporate the consensus opinions of the automotive industry as well as safety and reliability data.

About U.S. News and Best Cars
Best Cars, the automotive channel of U.S. News & World Report, publishes rankings of the majority of new vehicles sold in America. U.S. News annually publishes the Best Cars awards, including Best Vehicle Brands, Best Cars for the Money and Best Cars for Families. Best Cars had over 45 million unique visitors over the past year, with over 65 percent of visitors actively shopping for a car. Close to 80 percent of active shoppers reported that the U.S. News Best Cars site influenced their car purchasing decision.

U.S. News & World Report is a digital news and information company that empowers people to make better, more informed decisions about important issues affecting their lives. Focusing on Education, Health, Personal Finance, Travel, Cars and News & Opinion, USNews.com provides consumer advice, rankings, news and analysis to serve people making complex decisions throughout all stages of life. More than 37 million people visit USNews.comeach month for research and guidance. Founded in 1933, U.S. News is headquartered in Washington, D.C.