Real instrumented testing and a published award process, but it is ad-supported by the same automakers it reviews, which critics say creates a conflict of interest.
What it's really for A car magazine with real instrumented testing, funded by ads and affiliate links.
What our grade covers The grade on this page is about its instrumented road tests and 'of the Year' awards, not everything the site does.
High Scoring Confidence Checked against primary sources. We are confident in the facts and the grade here.
Automakers are the largest source of revenue through advertising, and while MotorTrend frames its awards as editorial, watchdog Checkbook.org argues such ad-funded auto awards carry an inherent conflict of interest.
Source →- Operating since
- 1949 (77 years) · source
- What it costs you
- Free to read The reviews are free to read.
- How they make money
- It makes money from advertising (display, native, and sponsored content), magazine subscriptions, and affiliate commissions on its buyer's guide.
- What they do
- MotorTrend road-tests and instrument-tests new vehicles, publishes ratings and buyer's guides, and runs the long-running Car/Truck/SUV of the Year awards.
- What to watch for
- Its scores rest on editors' expert judgment against six criteria rather than a fully reproducible point formula, and the brand carries heavy advertising from the automakers it covers.
- Composite score
- 3.30 / 5.00 → grade B
How the grade was reached
Does the site take money from the very entities it ranks? Pay-for-placement, vendor-funded data, and affiliate commissions all pull this down. The less the ranking can be bought, the higher the score.
What is the ranking actually built on? Hands-on testing scores highest, then verified first-hand reviews, then opinion or popularity surveys and self-reported figures, then pay-to-rank, which scores lowest.
Is the methodology published, specific, and reproducible? Can a reader see how a given rank was reached, or is it a black box?
Are commercial relationships, sponsorships, and affiliate arrangements disclosed clearly and near the rankings themselves, rather than buried?
How hard is it to game? Controls against fake reviews, solicited reviews, and vendor gaming raise this; an open box anyone can stuff lowers it.
Evidence
- Motor Trend was established in September 1949 by Robert E. Petersen and is currently owned by Hearst Communications, which acquired Motor Trend Group in December 2024 from Warner Bros. Discovery; revenue comes from subscriptions and advertising. Source: Wikipedia - Motor Trend →
- Cars undergo instrumented evaluation including skid-pad ratings, acceleration and quarter-mile times, a track run conducted by SCCA-licensed testers, and on-road drivability and fuel-economy testing, judged against six criteria: design advancement, engineering excellence, efficiency, safety, value, and performance of intended function. Source: Wikipedia - Motor Trend Car of the Year →
- Industry watchdog Checkbook.org argues that ad-supported auto awards, including MotorTrend's, carry conflicts of interest because the publications carry advertising from the same automakers, with automakers spending more than $15 billion on advertising in 2018. Source: Checkbook.org - So Many Auto Awards, So Many Conflicts of Interest →