2013 World Car of the Year finalists announced

The countdown has begun in preparation for the 2013 World Car Awards winners’ press conference hosted by the New York International Auto Show and Bridgestone Corporation on Thursday, March 28, 2013. The 2013 World Car of the Year, World Performance Car, World Green Car and World Car Design of the Year will all be declared at this time.

The top three finalists in all award categories will be announced at the Geneva International Motor Show on Tuesday, March 5th, 2013.

A jury of sixty-six (66) international automotive journalists selected the following top ten finalists in both categories 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 and the U.K., North America, Russia, as well as other parts of the world. All hold significant stature within their own regions and countries.

The international accounting firm KPMG tabulated the jurors’ ballots and announced the top ten finalists in both categories today.

The 2013 World Car of the Year will be selected from the following top ten cars listed in alphabetical order:

Audi A3
Land Rover Range Rover
Mazda6
Mazda CX-5
Mercedes-Benz A-Class
Peugeot 208
Porsche Boxster / Cayman
Scion FR-S / Subaru BRZ / Toyota GT 86 / Toyota 86
Volkswagen Golf
Volvo V40

The 2013 World Performance Car will be chosen from one of these top tenfinalists:

Aston Martin Vanquish
Audi RS 5
BMW M6 Coupe / Convertible
BMW M 135i
Ferrari F12 Berlinetta
Mercedes-Benz SL 63 AMG
Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Roadster
Porsche Boxster / Cayman
Renault Clio Sport
Scion FR-S / Subaru BRZ / Toyota GT 86 / Toyota 86

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. KPMG will again tabulate the vote results. The top three finalists in both categories will be announced at the Geneva International Motor Show on March 5th during a press conference co-hosted by Bridgestone Corporation and the New York International Auto Show.

Previous World Car of the Year winners were the Volkswagen Up! in 2012, the Nissan LEAF in 2011, the Volkswagen Polo in 2010, the Volkswagen Golf in 2009, the Mazda2 / Mazda Demio in 2008, the Lexus LS460 in 2007, the BMW 3-Series in 2006, and the Audi A6 in 2005.

Previous World Performance Car winners were the Porsche 911 in 2012, the Ferrari 458 Italia in 2011, the Audi R8 V10 in 2010, the Nissan GT-R in 2009, the Audi R8 in 2008, the Audi RS4 in 2007 and the Porsche Cayman S in 2006.

The 2013 World Green Car category is handled differently. Five experts in “green” technology were appointed by the World Car Awards Steering Committee to extensively review all documentation and specs associated with each candidate on the list of nominees. The experts then create a short-list of finalists for review by the sixty-six jurors in their second round of voting in February. The finalists for 2013 are:

Renault Zoe
smart Electric Drive
Tesla Model S
Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid
Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid Diesel

The five experts on the advisory panel are in alphabetical order: Phil Berg (USA - PopularMechanics.com); Richard Bremner (U.K.- cleangreencars.co.uk), Claus-Peter Koeth (Germany - automobil-industrie.de); Tadashi Tateuchi (Japan - founder and chairman of the Japan Electric Vehicle Club) and John Voelcker (USA - GreenCarReports.com)

Cars eligible for the 2013 World Car Design of the Year award are taken from the list of World Car candidates or they may be included as a stand-alone entry provided the vehicle is introduced and available for sale in at least one major market during the period beginning January 1, 2012 and ending May 30th, 2013.

Again, a design panel consisting of five highly respected world design experts was asked to first review each candidate, and then establish a short-list of recommendations for the jurors. The design experts are:

Masatsugu Arimoto (Japan – Freelance design journalist); Silvia Baruffaldi (Italy – Auto & Design magazine); Gernot Bracht (Germany – Pforzheim Design School); Sam Livingstone (U.K. - Car Design Research and Royal College of Art) and Tom Matano (USA - School of Industrial Design at Academy of Art University in San Francisco)

The finalists they’ve chose for the jurors are: