A perennial favorite, the Honda Civic, is as good as ever. We love the wide range of bodystyles, engines, and equipment. Civic is a solid car that has good performance, a nice ride, and a high degree of civility. We also love almost everything about the Ford Focus, but were reluctant to rank it a Best Buy because it was new from the ground up. After a year of living with a ZTS model, we can say that the reliability is good. Focus ranks a notch below Civic in some areas but costs less.

Topping the crowded Recommended list are the Volkswagen Golf and Jetta. They easily could be Best Buys. However, they are among the most expensive cars in this segment. Other Recommended choices include the no-frills Toyota Echo, the sporty Nissan Sentra, and the roomy Mazda Protege.

Total Hyundai sales have been mostly higher in 2001, but Elantra has been down. Though still Hyundai's top U.S. money-spinner, Elantra eased 2.9 percent in year-to-year sales for the first nine months after more than doubling in calendar '99 and adding 25 percent to that in 2000.

Elantra's only near-term news is the return of a wagon body style. This had been promised for '02, but has yet to appear. We'd guess Hyundai is saving it as an early 2003 announcement, with sales commencing by next summer if not before. Hyundai admits it goofed by not including a wagon in Elantra's 2001 redesign, underestimating its U.S. sales appeal. The new wagon should be priced close to the GT hatchback, but will probably be equipped like the GLS sedan.