New cars your mom will love

Mother’s Day may now be behind us, but there are always moms on the hunt for new vehicles.

With so many vehicles out there, we’ve put together a list of our favourite new vehicles that balance her probable needs, whether they’re eco friendliness, safety, cargo space, people hauling, or luxurious amenities.

Budget usually plays a leading role in choosing the right car, so we included some affordable, but safe cars along with a few top-of-the-line luxury rides. And we’ve also added some less-mainstream vehicles that just might be the perfect fit for her!

Subcompact Car: Mazda2

If your mom is looking for a reliable, fuel-efficient subcompact car that is as much fun to drive as it is to look at, we think that she will find a lot to love in the Mazda2 hatchback.

Offered in a single 5-door hatchback configuration, the Mazda2 is one of the most affordable ways to get into a new car.

Mazda developed the 2 from the ground up using lightweight SkyActiv technologies to help boost efficiency while amplifying driving fun.

Aggressive styling, bold colours, and a long list of standard features give it the advantage on more expensive alternatives, as does Mazda’s reputation for reliability.
 

Compact Car: Honda Civic

If your mom is looking for a compact car, the Honda Civic is a great pick for her. It is, after all, Canada’s best selling car.

Today’s Honda Civic comes in both sedan and coupe body styles, and with an array of four-cylinder engines. These include a base 140-hp engine, with a higher power 201-hp version fitted to Si models. A hybrid version is also available.

The Civic is still a conservative looking car, but recent updates have dressed up the styling a bit. The interior is spacious, if somewhat space-age in appearance with its double-decker dash layout.

Factor in Honda’s reputation for reliability, the Civic’s stellar safety record, and you can easily see why the Civic is a sensible bet for mom in every respect.

Non-luxury convertible: Mazda MX-5 (Miata)

For top down motoring pleasure in a package that won’t break the bank, your mom may not have to look any farther than the MX-5. She will only need only one turn behind the wheel to see why!

Brand new for 2016, this fourth generation of the legendary roadster features a 155-hp, 2.0-liter four-cylinder with a six-speed manual. Its extensive use of aluminium keeps weight down, so the MX-5 remains quick on its feet and fun to drive on twisty roads despite its modest horsepower rating.

Despite its minimalist interior, mom can still enjoy all of the expected modern comforts including with Bluetooth connectivity, power everything, and even available leather seats.

Luxury Sports Coupe/Convertible: BMW M4

If your mom enjoys having a rocket ship under the command of her right foot, the M4 may be the right car for her. Make sure she is prepared for explosive performance courtesy of BMW’s M division.

The M4 is the newest addition to BMW’s line of M performance coupes and is also available as a hard top convertible. The car certainly lives up to the legends that preceded it. In a mission to shave weight, many of the M4’s components have even been made of carbon fibre, including the driveshaft.

Power comes from a 425-hp twin-turbo inline six-cylinder, mated to either a six-speed manual or a paddle-shifted seven-speed automatic and rear-wheel drive.

Family Sedan: Toyota Camry

The Toyota Camry has long been criticized as being bland, but yet it is a staple in school parking lots.

For 2015, Toyota tries to shed the Camry’s stigma with bolder styling, upgraded interior trim and equipment, and minor chassis changes that it hopes will impress current owners.

There is also a hybrid model available, or on the other side of the spectrum, a new XSE model that Toyota hopes will attract more enthusiastic drivers with a stiffer suspension and some extra swagger.

Electric Car: BMW i3

If your mom is looking to go electric with style, look no further than the BMW i3.  

With its distinctive styling and revolutionary lightweight carbon-fibre/aluminum structure, the i3 represents BMW’s inaugural efforts in their new “I” division.

Packaged in a small but efficient shape, the i3 seats four adults in quiet comfort. Despite its skinny tires, the i3 has been designed to take electric car driving principles to a new realm.

BMW Canada estimates the i3’s all-electric range at around 160 km per charge; it can charge in three hours from a 220-volt outlet.

If mom is not quite ready to take the plunge to a full-electric car, an optional range-extending gas 3-cylinder engine provides a total range of up to 250 kms to help alleviate dead-battery anxiety.

Minivan: Toyota Sienna

Toyota’s Sienna is practically the Camry of minivans, appealing to a wide range of families looking for safe, roomy, comfortable, and high-quality transportation.

It is also the only minivan left in the segment that is available with all-wheel-drive, a bonus for regions with inclement weather conditions.

All Siennas are powered by Toyota’s ubiquitous 266-hp 3.5-liter V-6 paired to a six-speed automatic.

An intercom allows front-seat occupants to address the third row, and a Blu-Ray entertainment display keeps the kids in line. Unfortunately, like most minivans, driving amusement isn’t on the menu.

Luxury small SUV: Lexus NX200t / NX300 hybrid

If the idea of an eye-catching, comfortable and technologically sophisticated compact-luxury-crossover SUV sounds good to your mom, then the new Lexus NX 200t or NX 300h may be on mom’s short list.

Offering reliability that’s synonymous with the Lexus brand name, the NX compact luxury SUV is the company’s first effort into this competitive market and also features its first turbocharged engine.

Loosely based on the same platform as the Toyota RAV4, the Lexus NX is offered in both turbo four cylinder and hybrid engine choices (denoted as the NX200t and the NX300h respectively).

Overall both choices will get you a sharp-looking, fun-driving and surprisingly roomy luxury SUV despite its tidy external dimensions. An interior that punches well above its weight class in design, materials and technology also lends an air of sophistication befitting the Lexus brand.