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Those Detroit CEOs and their private jets. “The Real Housewives of Orange County” and their swanky spending. Maybe none of them got the memo, but conspicuous consumption is out. Frugal is in.
And it can be fun, too. Take the mild-but-mod sedans below. All are either new or have had complete makeovers, with smart styling, sharp handling and the latest high-tech features. Most are fuel efficient, another turn-on these days. And prices range from $19,000 to just $33,000.
So to all potential car buyers this summer, take a memo: Thrifty is sexy, not stingy.
Price: $26,000
MPG: 19 city/29 highway
Dull handling. Dowdy design. Doily-friendly dash. For years, the Taurus has been a granny-mobile. Not anymore. Thanks to a rad redo, Ford’s flagship sedan now has an Audi-like profile, with wraparound headlights, handsome grille and raised rear end. The rich interior — chrome gauges, ambient lighting and tight fit and finish — looks like something out of Jaguar’s playbook. And the ride is stiff — in a good way — and responsive. Another plus: Gas mileage is 10 percent better than in the old model. Available in front- or all-wheel drive, this five-passenger hauler is full of high-tech safety gear: collision-warning system, cross-traffic alert, blind-spot detection and post-crash SOS alert. Best of all, the SHO performance model is back, with aluminum-trimmed pedals, rear spoiler, chrome exhaust tips and a boffo twin-turbo V6. Sure, the SHO is $11,000 more than the base-model Taurus. But that’s half the price of some Euro sport sedans with similar 0-to-60 stats.
Price: $33,000
MPG: 18 city/27 highway
Sometimes it’s better to be a mutt than a purebred. So it goes with the Genesis, Hyundai’s first-ever luxe sedan. To compete with the high-end big boys, the rear-drive Genesis looks like a Mercedes from the front, a Lexus from the rear and handles like a BMW 5 Series (well, sort of). The ride may be soft and the cornering a bit yacht-like, but the steering is precise and the braking spot-on. Choice of two engines: 290-hp V6 or 375-hp V8, which scoots this 4,000-pound chariot from 0-to-60 mph in just 5.9 seconds. Along with a whisper-quiet cabin, there are a slew of amenities: backup camera, rain-sensing wipers, heated/cooled seats, 15-speaker surround-sound stereo and nav system with real-time traffic updates.
Price: $19,000
MPG: 20 city/29 highway
“Zoom-zoom” may be your speed-dating mantra, but it’s also the Mazda motto. And it’s what the reworked Mazda6 delivers. Mostly. The car is longer, wider and roomier than before, which makes competing with the popular — though ho-hum — Toyota Camry easier. But bigger means heavier, and the front-drive Mazda6 loses plenty of punch in the four-cylinder model. Opting for the zippy V6 — with its macho exhaust rumble — gives an adrenaline rush, but gas mileage drops to a lousy 17 city/25 highway. Still, handling is lively, the form-fitting seats are masseuse-like and there’s room for four sets of golf clubs and a couple of picnic baskets in the trunk. And talk about versatile, there are seven trim levels to help fit any budget.
Price: $28,000
MPG: 21 city/31 highway
Amy Winehouse may not go to rehab, but VW did. After the glitzy $100,000 Phaeton bombed a few years ago, VW went to work on the smaller and very affordable CC. Similar to the Mercedes CLS, the CC is built on the midsize Passat platform and looks like a chic coupe — thanks mainly to its sharply tapered roofline. This means low headroom for rear-seat passengers and a narrow trunk, at least compared with the roomier but plain-Jane Passat. Yet the CC offers crisp steering, sport-tuned suspension and a posh cabin, with steering-wheel paddle shifters, digital music storage and power rear sunshade. And both engine choices — a turbo four-cylinder or high-test V6 — are hot. Best of all, the CC is a whopping $50,000 less than that Mercedes CLS.
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