And Now There Are Ten .... Top Ten Finalists Announced in 2006 World Car of the Year Competition

NEW YORK, Feb. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- The final countdown has begun! From an
initial entry list of twenty-seven (27) eligible new vehicles, from all over
the world, a short list of ten finalists for the inaugural World Car of the
Year award was released today.

The 2006 World Car of the Year will be selected from the following
finalists:

* BMW 3-Series
* Honda Civic / Civic Hybrid
* Land Rover Range Rover Sport
* Lexus IS
* Mazda MX-5
* Mercedes-Benz M-Class
* Mercedes-Benz S-Class
* Porsche Cayman S
* Suzuki Swift
* Volkswagen Passat

A jury of 46 international automotive journalists selected the finalists
by secret ballot, based on their experience with all the entrants. The jury
members constitute a balance of representation from Asia, Europe, North
America, as well as other parts of the world.
The jury's next step is to re-evaluate the "Top Ten" vehicles, in
preparation for a final round of voting in March. They will specifically
rate each vehicle in terms of overall merit, value, safety, environmental
responsibility, emotional appeal, and significance. The international
accounting firm of KPMG will tabulate the vote results and the top three
finalists will be announced on April 1, 2006.
The 2006 World Car of the Year will be declared on Thursday, April 13,
2006 during a press conference to be held at the New York International Auto
Show.
Three additional groups of finalists, for World Performance Car, World
Green Car, and World Car Design of the Year, will be announced by March 15,
2006, before the jurors cast their final votes. The winners of those three
specialty awards will also be announced at the New York Auto Show in April.
A panel of international experts in each of the environmental and design
fields has been chosen to assist the jurors by developing the short lists of
finalists from the array of eligible candidates in each of those categories.
The World Car of the Year program is administered as a non-profit
corporation with a Steering Committee of six journalist members who oversee
and monitor the integrity of the voting process, the jury members, and the
operation of program.

WCOTY is intended to complement, not compete with, existing COTY awards by
raising consumer awareness of regional Car of the Year award programs as well
as the World Car of the Year.
For more information about the WCOTY, please visit our web site at
http://www.wcoty.com or e-mail or call Beth Xenarios, Executive Manager, at
beth@ajac.ca, 1-905-342-2220.
Kicking off the springtime selling season, the 2006 New York International
Auto Show will feature an impressive collection of cutting-edge design and
remarkable innovation. More than four floors of displays from the world's
automakers will feature the newest vehicles and futuristic concept cars. More
than 1,000 cars and trucks will be on display at the Javits Center, filling
846,000 square feet of exhibit space. In addition, dozens of World and North
American vehicle debuts are expected at the Show. NYIAS is owned and produced
by the Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association.

Important Auto Show Dates
Press Preview April 12 & 13
Public Sneak Preview April 14
Public Show Dates April 14 - April 23

Good to see a lexus on there.

the 2is is indeed one big improvement and a great car overall

My choice : Co-winner - Porsche Cayman S & Lexus IS350 ;) :D

So, who's collecting bets on this one?:p

Here's my prediction/bet:;)

The top 3 finalists:
BMW 3-Series
Honda Civic / Civic Hybrid
Porsche Cayman S

The winner:
Honda Civic / Civic Hybrid

I wanted to add the IS to the finalist list but realistically I think the 3-Series will be picked over the IS by the judges as usual.:sad:

Guess the Lexus LS isn't fully released to the public, otherwise I think it qualifies on this list. Good to see the IS on there, as well as some of the other luxury efforts.

Don't know anything about the Suzuki Swift, but I like the rest of the list!

Don't know anything about the Suzuki Swift, but I like the rest of the list!

Word - where in the world did that come from!! Was it a typo :uh:

Jonny

Don't know anything about the Suzuki Swift, but I like the rest of the list!
Believe it or not, it won EVO car of the year :eek2:

Believe it or not, it won EVO car of the year :eek2:Yep, and if you actually watched Top Gear's Winter Olympics (http://www.clublexus.com/forums/showthread.php?t=202502) you'd hear Jeremy Clarkson praising about this little car, which they later used to crush into each other on a hockey field.:D

They will specifically rate each vehicle in terms of overall merit, value, safety, environmental responsibility, emotional appeal, and significance.
As much as I love my new IS, I don't think that it will win because it does not win on all of the factors mentioned above.

Overall Merit: as an arrow aimed straight at the 3-Series, it does a good job but falters in performance and handling.

Value: with standard equipment a-plenty, it does provide good value in technology and convenience. For space and cabin room, the IS lacks compared to comprable competitors.

Safety: this is a definate win for the IS.

Environmental Responsibility: this is a definate win for the IS.

Emotional Appeal: unfortunately, the IS appeals to the "artist's eye." It is beautiful in its simplicity and balance, but generally, people love the dramatic look of something more aggressive and daring, such as the Honda Civics, Porsche Cayman S, or the quirky Passat.

Significance: the IS is definately a significant addition for the 2006 lineup. I just don't think that it is the most significant...

Just my opinion...

My predictions:

Top three finalists:
BMW 3-series
Mazda MX-5
Mercedes-Benz S-class

Winner:
BMW 3-series

Here's their 2005 results taken from the link wcoty.com in the original post, won by Audi A6.
Why did the PR say this year's is the inaugural World Car of the Year Award when they have a competition in 2005 ? :uh:

2006 World Car of the Year Awards
And Now There Are Three ...


NEW YORK, April 3 -- The countdown continues! From an initial entry list of twenty-seven (27) new vehicles from all over the world, then a short list of ten finalists, the top three contenders for the second annual World Car of the Year awards were announced today by the international accounting firm KPMG.

The 2006 World Car of the Year top three finalists are, in alphabetical order:

* BMW 3 Series
* Mazda MX-5
* Porsche Cayman S

A jury of 46 international automotive journalists considered a variety of parameters; then individually reviewed, evaluated, and voted on the World Car of the Year entrants by secret ballot. The international accounting firm KPMG tabulated the ballots to first determine the finalists, and finally the winner.

The 2006 World Car of the Year will be declared on Thursday, April 13, 2006 during a press conference presented by The Midway Group and hosted by the New York International Auto Show.

Announcing the annual World Car of the Year awards at the New York show is a fitting finale to the auto show season that begins each fall with either the Paris or Frankfurt motor shows. Next, it's on to Tokyo in alternating years. The Detroit show takes centre stage in January while Geneva claims the spotlight in March. Finally, in April, the season reaches its exciting climax at the New York International Auto Show.

Three additional groups of finalists, for World Performance Car, World Green Car, and World Car Design of the Year, will be announced during the same press conference on April 13, 2006.

Graham Johnson, co-chair of the World Car of the Year steering committee, announced the addition of the new awards in October. "Performance, design, and environmental responsibility are all key elements in the success of a vehicle on a global scale," he said, "so we believe it is appropriate that we recognize exceptional achievement in those specific areas with their own awards."

A panel of international experts in each of the environmental and design fields was chosen to assist the jurors by developing the short lists of finalists from the array of eligible candidates in each of those categories.

The three finalists for the 2006 World Green Car are: Citroen C1 1.4 Hdi (Diesel), Honda Civic Hybrid and the Lexus RX 400h/Toyota Harrier Hybrid.

For the 2006 World Car Design of the Year, the three finalists are: BMW 3-Series, Citroen C4, and the Honda Civic / Civic Hybrid (European version).

The 46 member jury themselves determined the top three finalists in the World Performance Car category. They are: the Audi RS4, the BMW M5 and the Porsche Cayman S.

Today's world is truly a global village -- especially within the automotive industry. National borders are effectively non-existent in terms of where vehicles and their components are designed, engineered, developed, built, and sold. The World Car of the Year Awards, of which the Audi A6 was the inaugural winner in 2005, reflect the truly global nature of the 21st-century automotive business and, at the same time, recognizes and rewards automotive excellence on a global scale.

The World Car of the Year Awards program is initiated by, organized by, and conducted by, automotive journalists from around the globe. A non-profit association guided by a steering committee of journalists from Asia, Europe, and North America administers the awards program. WCOTY is intended to complement, not compete with, existing COTY awards by raising consumer awareness of regional Car of the Year award programs as well as the World Car of the Year.

About the New York International Auto Show

Kicking off the springtime selling season, the 2006 New York International Auto Show will feature an impressive collection of cutting-edge design and remarkable innovation. More than four floors of displays from the world's automakers will feature the newest vehicles and futuristic concept cars. More than 1,000 cars and trucks will be on display at the Javits Center, filling 846,000 square feet of exhibit space. In addition, dozens of World and North American vehicle debuts are expected at the Show. NYIAS is owned and produced by the Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association.

source : theautochannel

What..... no ford, dodge, or chevy? :p