Top Ten World Car, World Performance Car, and World Green Car Finalists Announced
The countdown has begun in preparation for the 2008 World Car awards winners’ press conference at the New York International Auto Show on Thursday, March 20, 2008.
A jury of 47 distinguished international automotive journalists selected the finalists by secret ballot, based on their experience with each candidate as part of their professional work. The jury members constitute a balance of representation from Asia, Europe, North America, South America, as well as other parts of the world. All hold significant stature within their own regions and countries.
The 2008 World Car of the Year will be selected from the following top ten finalists:
Audi A5 Coupé/Audi S5 Coupé
Audi R8
Cadillac CTS
Ford Mondeo
Ford S-Max
Mazda2/Mazda Demio
Mercedes-Benz C-Class
Nissan Qashqai/Dualis
Nissan Skyline Coupe/Infiniti G37 Coupe
Volvo C30
The 2008 World Performance Car, presented by Mobil 1, will be chosen from one of these top ten finalists: AMG Mercedes-Benz CL 63
AMG Mercedes-Benz S 63
Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster
Audi R8
Audi S5 Coupé
BMW M3
Honda Civic R (Japanese & European spec)
Maserati GranTurismo
Mercedes-Benz CLK63 AMG Black Series
Renault Clio F1 Team R27
“For more than 30 years, Mobil 1 has been the recommended oil for the world's top high performance vehicles,” said Nancy Carlson, strategic global alliances manager, ExxonMobil Lubricants & Specialties. “It was a natural fit to bring Mobil 1 and the World Performance Car Award program together to honor these vehicles and the original equipment manufacturers who build them, in their quest to become the top performance car in the world .”
The jurors’ next step is to re-evaluate the “Top Ten” cars in both classes, in preparation for a final round of voting in February. 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 then announce the top three finalists on February 20, 2008.
As there are ten candidates for the 2008 World Green Car title, they become by default the top ten finalists in this class. They are:
BMW 118d with Efficient Dynamics
Chevrolet Equinox Fuel Cell Electric VehicleChevrolet Tahoe/GMC Yukon HybridsChevrolet Malibu HybridLexus LS 600h LNissan Altima HybridSaturn Aura Green LineSaturn Vue Green LineSmartForTwo cdiVolkswagen Passat 1.9 TDI BlueMotion
The selection of finalists in the World Car Design of the Year category are handled quite differently. A panel of international design experts assists the jurors by developing for them a short list of finalists from the array of eligible candidates in the 2008 World Car of the Year category. The jurors will choose the 2008 World Car Design of the Year winner from this short list when they vote in February. The top three contenders will also be announced by KPMG on February 20, 2008.
Now in their fifth year, the annual World Car awards have become one of the most prestigious and credible programs of their type in the world.
The awards were inaugurated in 2003, and officially launched in January 2004, to reflect the reality of the global marketplace, as well as to recognize and reward automotive excellence on a global scale. The awards are intended to complement, not compete, with existing national and regional Car of the Year programs.
The awards are administered by a non-profit association, under the guidance of a Steering Committee of preeminent automotive journalists from Asia, Europe, and North America. There is no affiliation with, nor are the awards in any way influenced by any publication, auto show, automaker, or other commercial enterprise.
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