The year 2020 was not like any other in recent memory, but on the road, when doing my job, it was still more or less like the others. This even though, starting in March, the presentations and in-person test drives of new and upcoming models pretty much dried up due to the pandemic.
Nevertheless, looking back over what I drove this year, I easily found 10 reviews that stood out, for different reasons. And take note: these are not necessarily performance-based models or products that were necessarily all-new. But they had in common that they made an impression on me in one way or the other over the past year.
I present them to you in the order in which they were driven during 2020.
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1 — Kia Seltos
The Kia Seltos marked my year 2020 for two reasons. First, it was the last model I tried outside of Canada this year, before international travel was more or less shut down. The all-new Seltos was presented in Texas at the end of February. Of course, two weeks later, there was no more talk of launches and trips for our fraternity of automotive journalists.
The Seltos also caught my attention for another reason, however. Using a formula that makes this model a fence-sitter between the sub-compact and compact SUV categories, Kia has a player on its roster that should bring dividends in the coming years. In fact, the company estimates that it will become the brand's best-selling model in 2021. An interesting and well-conceived product.
