Playboy picks its 2015 Cars of the Year

Porsche 911 Carrera GTS takes the top prize but there are other winners as well

Gerry Malloy
Published: January 27, 2015, 4:05 AM
Updated: April 8, 2015, 8:28 PM

Playboy 2015 Car of the Year - Courtesy of Playboy magazine

Playboy 2015 Car of the Year - Courtesy of Playboy magazine ▲

2015 Porsche 911 Carrera GTS with Patrick Dempsey

You may already be aware that Playboy selects a Playmate of the Month and a Playmate of the Year But did you know there's also a Playboy Car of the Year. In fact, as well as an overall winner, the magazine selects Cars of the Year for several different lifestyles. Without further adieu, here are Playboy's picks for 2015. ▲

2015 Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG 4MATIC Coupe

SEDANS & COUPES: Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG 4Matic Coupe – Playboy usually picks separate winners for Sedan and Coupe categories but this year a single winner was chosen to cover both, and a worthy winner it is. The S63 AMG 4Matic Coupe complements its 577 hp bi-turbo V-8 engine with looks and handling to match. ▲

2015 Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG 4MATIC Coupe

SEDANS & COUPES: Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG 4Matic Coupe – Beyond just stellar performance, it pampers its occupants with such luxury amenities as “hot-stone massage” seats and atomizer aromatherapy and it keeps them snug and safe with enough electronic nannies to make it borderline autonomous in operation. As Playboy puts it, "for now the driving game doesn’t get much better than this." ▲

2015 Alfa Romeo 4C - Spider

SPORTS CARS & CONVERTIBLES: Alfa Romeo 4C – After a two-decade sabbatical, Alfa Romeo is back in North America with just a single model, but what an Italian beauty it is. Initially it appeared only in coupe form but an open-top Spider model was introduced at the 2015 Detroit auto show. It's powered by a mid-mounted 237-hp turbocharged four-cylinder engine that's capable of accelerating from 0-to-100 km/h in less than five seconds. ▲

2015 Alfa Romeo 4C

SPORTS CARS & CONVERTIBLES: Alfa Romeo 4C – The 4C's lightweight carbon-fibre construction is a big factor in that impressive performance. It's also the source of the car's voluptuous body curves, which are a constant delight to the eyes, from any angle. Playboy says, "it’s obvious the 4C is a machine built for high-speed cornering, not casual trips to the corner store, which is more than enough to earn our esteem." ▲

2015 Cadillac Escalade

CUVs & SUVs: Cadillac Escalade – While most of the action in the SUV classes is taking place further down the ranks, especially at the 'soft-roader' CUV level, Cadillac stuck to the script in redesigning its big 'King-of-the hill', body-on-frame Escalade. Essentially all-new, it continues to embrace the brand's hard-edged design idiom and box-like profile. ▲

2015 Cadillac Escalade

CUVs & SUVs: Cadillac Escalade – Powered by a thoroughly-modern, albeit OHV, 6.2-litre V-8, it's no slouch in getting around, nor in its amenities. Within its luxurious cabin it's also at the cutting edge of connectivity, featuring 4G LTE technology and an in-vehicle wi-fi hotspot. It's full value for its selection as one of Playboy's cars of the year. ▲

2015 BMW i8

GREEN/ALT POWER: BMW i8 – With the i8, BMW blows away the myth that green cars have to be dowdy. Dual-powered by a 1.5-litre three-cylinder engine with motorcycle origins and an electric motor, this plug-in hybrid is as beautiful as it is environmentally conscious. ▲

2015 BMW i8

GREEN/ALT POWER: BMW i8 – The i-8's swoopy lines, lambo-lke doors, LED illumination and futuristic overall design give it the look of an exotic. It's quick, too, with a 0-to-100 km/h capability of less than five seconds. It's a natural choice as Playboy's Creen/Alt Power Car of the Year. ▲

Lamborghini Huracán

SPLURGE: Lamborghini Huracán – Playboy chose two cars on which to splurge – sort of a T-shirt vs tux decision. On the T-shirt front (or perhaps more likely a tailored Italian dress shirt) there's the Lamborghini Huracán. Playboy described it as "perfectly controlled chaos," preferring it to its Aventador big brother. ▲

Lamborghini Huracán

SPLURGE: Lamborghini Huracán – The output from the Huracán's 602-hp V-10 engine is transmitted though its ANIMA driving-mode selector, which, in Playboy's words, "changes its demeanor from Strada (rough translation: sweatpants and espresso) to Sport and finally to Corsa, a race mode that sprints you straight to the gym." ▲

Rolls-Royce Ghost Series II

SPLURGE: Rolls-Royce Ghost II – On the tuxedo side of the Splurge equation, Plavboy opted for the Rolls-Royce Ghost II rather than the even more upscale Phantom. After all, with the Ghost II, it's permissible to drive it yourself. In fact, you'll want to drive it yourself. ▲

Rolls-Royce Ghost Series II

SPLURGE: Rolls-Royce Ghost II – With an exquisitely smooth twin-turbo V-12 engine beneath the bonnet, this Rolls really is a pleasure to drive. As Playboy puts it, "it doesn’t lunge or surge forward; it just disappears." Of course, it does so with refined grandeur, pampering you in plush high-pile carpeting and leather it describes as, "soft as warm butter." What better way to splurge and pamper? ▲

Porsche 911 Carrera GTS

PLAYBOY CAR OF THE YEAR: Porsche 911 Carrera GTS – Playboy admits to an on-going fling with the Porsche 911 Carrera that has lasted seven years, and counting. Admittedly it was tempted by the more track-focused GT3, which is faster, bolder in appearance and overall more macho in character. But it is the only slightly less endowed Carrera GTS that claims the grand prize. ▲

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