Now you have a legitimate reason to tell your significant other that you’re only reading the latest issue of Playboy for the articles as the world famous magazine has published its list of the hottest models of 2011…err on four-wheels that is.

Yes, Playboy’s 2011 Cars of the Year awards is on and this year there's a string of beauties, any one of which we wouldn’t mind calling our own.  

So, starting with the most important, the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG has taken out the top spot, and for good reason. The judges described it as “a vehicle that wants to be luxuriated in, with a throttle that begs to be pounded.”

Moving on, and perhaps as a sign of the times, there were three environmentally friendly cars on the list, with the Honda CR-Z taking out “Best Hybrid”, the Chevrolet Volt taking out “Best Plug-in” and the funky Mazda2 being awarded “Best Bang for the Buck”.

All in all we’d have to agree with most of the choices listed. You can check out the digital print version of the awards by following the jump below, but if you must have the magazine, for all the beautiful…cars, the awards are published in the January issue, which went on sale Friday.    

Playboy’s 2011 Cars of the Year:
Best Hybrid – Honda CR-Z
Best Convertible – Porsche Boxster Spyder
Best Sports Coupe – Cadillac CTS-V
Best Bang for the Buck – Mazda2
Best Sports Sedan – Aston Martin Rapide
Best SUV – Jeep Grand Cherokee
Most likely to succeed – Hyundai Equus
Best Plug-in – Chevrolet Volt
Car of the Year – Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG

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