After all is said and done
So there you have it. The Kizashi is the new Mid-Size Queen. Now, we do realize that Suzuki will not sell 50,000 of these, but it is certainly worth a look. If you don't want a bus-sized car like the Accord and don't want to feel old with a Camry, stop by your local Suzuki dealer. Granted, the Kizashi may not be for all, as the older testers in the group didn't rate it as highly as the younger ones, given its reduced dimensions and simply because Suzuki is not that highly regarded as a brand. One thing is for sure, the collective's expectations were annihilated after spending time with this car. A standing ovation for Suzuki!

(Photo: Philippe Champoux/Auto123.com)

As for the Hyundai Sonata, it is clear that, perhaps for the first time in their history, Honda and Toyota will have to use a Korean car as a yardstick. The Sonata is the car to beat. If the next Accord and Camry cannot match or beat the Sonata at its game, value and quality-minded consumers could opt for the wiser, more affordable Hyundai in droves.

And in final conclusion, the best observation we can report is that all these cars, including the Mazda, the Subaru and the Ford are worthy--some more than others, obviously--but the bottom line is that there're all so close, they're all good in their own way and having to rank them wasn't amusing. In fact, you will not be making a mistake if you select any them.