TTAC'S Ten Best and Ten Worst is Back for 2018 - Get Your Nominations In [UPDATED]

That’s right – we’re doing that thing again where we, the TTAC tastemakers, pick our best and worst cars of 2018. And by “we” I also mean you, the B&B.

Just like the last time we did this, you’re invited to submit your nominations. More on that in a second. There won’t be any prizes this time around, but you might get your words splashed across these virtual pages, and isn’t that reward enough?

We’re living in an era in which a great many cars are good, but bad ones still lurk. So, with your help, we’re going to sort the best from the rest, and the worst of the lot will get what’s coming to them.

We could just ask you what the best and worst driver’s cars are, but that’s too easy. However, we don’t want to muck things up too much by creating all sorts of price and class categories.

[UPDATE: It’s become clear to me that some of you are using the comments instead of our survey link. In order to make sure your vote counts, CLICK HERE]

Therefore, we’ll be using the rules from before, with slight tweaks. And the same criteria, also tweaked.

Rules and specifics regarding the nominating process will be listed below. Before we get there, let’s lay out some basic guidelines that will help you narrow down your choices.

Styling: As before, this can go in either direction. Does a car catch your eye because it’s beautiful, or do you want to ask the designer what drugs he or she was on when the styling was penned? There’s beauty out there, and ugliness, and looks are but one key factor into what makes a car great, or not so great.

Intangibles: If you find yourself asking why a given car exists, or how an automaker built something great despite there being a poor business case, you’re thinking about intangibles. Does a given model make no sense? Or are you happy that the car guys beat the accountants to produce something wonderful?

Tech: Comfort, convenience, safety, driver assistance – a wave of convenience and cutting edge niceties has flooded the market. Few cars remain untouched. Points can be earned or deducted here by how an automaker allots tech across its lineup (in addition to how well it works). Some cars may be laden with unnecessary tech for the price point, while others are too barren with respect to the dollars spent.

Rental Factor: It’s not just about what car is fun to drive or offers value for the money or is good to look at it (or the opposite of those factors). It’s also about a visceral reaction. What car would you avoid on a rental lot, or would you judge your neighbor for buying? Conversely, what car are you secretly hoping to get a chance to drive, or even ride in?

Rules? Yes, there are rules. Here they are:

• Any car or light truck offered for sale for the 2018 or 2019 model year is eligible – provided it is currently on sale. Any vehicle that hasn’t hit dealer lots yet is ineligible, even if it will be available by year’s end. Price, class, automaker, country of origin, sales numbers – none of that really matters. If a vehicle is a car or light truck, a 2018 or 2019 model, and on sale in the United States as of October 15, 2018, it’s eligible.
• Please don’t be lazy with your nominations. Really think about them and put forth your reasoning. Go beyond “it’s good” or “it’s bad.” Do so in order to challenge yourself, and also so your prose may be included in our write-ups.
• Vehicles that are virtually identical in all but badging may be nominated as a team.
• Since some vehicles will get both Best and Worst nods, we’ll assign a score based on the net difference. So if a car gets 30 Best nods and 20 Worst, it will be given 10 Best marks.
• The staff will select 20 finalists for each category, based on how you present your nomination reasoning and our own opinions of each vehicle.
• Readers will then vote on the final 40.
• You’ll have until October 22nd to get all your nominations in – please do so by 5 pm Central time that day. After we cull the nominations, you’ll have until October 31st to finalize your voting.

Click here to vote!

[Image: Shutterstock/Tomertu]