The organizers of the World Car Of The Year (WCOTY) competition announced the top ten finalists of the main competition at the beginning of February, and then the short lists of the remaining nominations were published. And now the TOP-3 participants have become known, Kolesa reported.
According to the rules, the main prize for the title of the best car in the world is contested by models with an annual production volume of at least 10,000 units, cars must be sold on at least two continents and at least two major markets (China, Europe, India, Japan, South Korea, Latin America, or USA). The best ones are chosen by a panel of judges, which includes more than a hundred journalists from 30 countries; Russia is also on the list.
And so, the main prize will be taken by a "South Korean" or a "German," as the TOP-3 models are Hyundai, Kia, and BMW. By the way, this season was generally “fruitful” for South Korean and German companies, as their models are nominated in some other categories as well.
The models that were in the TOP 10, but were completely left out of the competition, are the following: Alfa Romeo Tonale, BMW 2 Series Coupe, Honda HR-V/ZR-V, Mazda CX-60, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Nissan Ariya, and Nissan Z.
The related categories are City Car of the Year, Sports Car of the Year, Premium Car of the Year, Electric Car of the Year, and Best Design. It should be noted that the conditions of participation are different here. There were originally three finalists in this category, so none were eliminated. Here it is worth explaining that the announced compact Citroen has little in common with the model of the same name for Europe. The budget car manufactured for India and Latin America is competing for the title of the best. It is also interesting that a "Chinese" car can become a "global" city car, as the Ora brand belongs to the Great Wall concern, its Funky Cat/Haomao hatch is an electric car, which is also sold in Europe.
This WCOTY season is no less “fruitful” for Chinese-rooted brand Lucid than for BMW or Hyundai-Kia, with the large Air electric sedan making it to the finals in two other related categories. Well, as for "premium," Land Rover models no longer have a chance to become the best, as Range Rover and Range Rover Sport have left the competition.
The winners of this year’s World Car Of The Year contest will be announced at the New York International Auto Show, which will open in April. Last year, the Hyundai Ioniq 5 "green" cross-hatch won the main prize, which also became the Electric Car of the Year and received an award for design. In 2022, the Mercedes-Benz EQS was named the Premium Car of the Year, the Audi e-tron GT—the Sports Car of the Year, and the Toyota Yaris Cross SUV—the City Car of the Year.
