5 best redesigns for 2013

Just as 1961 was a good year for Bordeaux wine and 1939 was a great year for movies (Gone with the Wind beat The Wizard of Oz at the Oscars), this looks like a promising year for cars.

Automakers have redesigned nearly two dozen models for 2013's U.S. market, and Kelley Blue Book's Jack Nerad says many of the revamped models stand head and shoulders above their 2012 counterparts.

"It's a very, very strong year for redesigns," says Nerad, who recently led a team of KBB editors that picked the new Ford (F_) Fusion as 2013's Best Redesigned Vehicle.

Nerad says consumers will like not only the new Fusion, but also such midsized models as the updated Honda (HMC_) Accord -- "which in any other year would likely win our Best Redesign award. You also have cars in other segments that are good as well, like the redesigned Nissan (NSANY_) Pathfinder SUV."

The expert says the best automotive redesigns are those that make "the largest step forward from what a model was before. A lot of people think it just has to do with exterior design, but interior design and any redoing of a vehicle's mechanics are equally important."

Here's a look at five models that KBB editors believe manufacturers revamped particularly well for 2013.

Nerad says the vehicles below all offer significantly improved styling, comfort, performance, safety, fuel economy, electronics, convenience features, value and overall refinement. All models are listed in order of their manufacturer's suggested retail price.