MOTORTREND SUV OF THE YEAR 2024 - CERTIFIED FRESH

THERE’S NO REST FOR SUV MAKERS IN THE INTENSE QUEST TO BE THE BEST

- Miguel Cortina

ROCKED BY A HURRIQUAKE

31 nameplates competed for this year’s award—we just had to battle Mother Nature to get things started.

The day before SUV of the Year testing began, tropical storm Hilary dumped a year’s worth of rain on Southern California in just 18 hours. The storm didn’t care about the eight months of planning it took us to get to this point or the dozens of discussions to coordinate logistics in the week prior to our program. Our new plan was to stay safe and avoid being stranded—or worse—by the mudslides and flash floods occurring near the auto test facility that would serve as our base for the week.

We made the decision to send our photo, video, test, and editorial teams to a hotel in Palmdale instead of our usual spot in Tehachapi. It proved wise—later that day a mudslide blocked the east- and westbound lanes of California State Route 58, which connects Tehachapi with California City, where the proving ground lies. Meanwhile, Detroiters Eric Tingwall and Matt Chudzinski altered plans to avoid being trapped at the airport. Tingwall took the long road via Las Vegas, spending the night in Barstow, California, while Chudzinski arrived in L.A. a day after his original flight. We spent the weekend glued to the TV, watching local news and The Weather Channel, plus tracking updates from Caltrans and the National Hurricane Center on social media.