GENEVA, Dec 15 — The final shortlist of seven cars has been revealed ahead of the awards ceremony, which will be held on the eve of the 2015 Geneva Motor Show on March 2.
The long list of 31 potential finalists for one of motoring’s most prestigious prizes has been whittled down and has seen a host of big names fall to the curb including the Audi TT, the Lexus RC and Porsche’s new affordable SUV, the Macan.
However, a number of premium automotive brands remain in contention, most notably BMW which made the long list with five different models and is still in the running with its 2-Series Active Tourer. If the company is to scoop the award in March it will be the first time in the company’s history.
And as good as the Active Tourer is, it is facing stiff competition. The other remaining nominees are the Citroen C4 Cactus, the Ford Mondeo, the Nissan Qashqai, Renault Twingo, Volkswagen Passat and the Mercedes-Benz C-Class.
The awards, which have been running since 1964, are presided over by a panel of 58 motoring journalists from 22 European counties.
The award takes into consideration everything from excitement and dynamic performance to affordability, economy and practicality. In 2014 the award went to the Peugeot 308 and the 2013 winner, the Volkswagen Golf went on one month later to scoop the World Car of the Year award, which is announced at the New York Motor Show. — AFP-Relaxnews
