NZ Car of the Year finalists named

Thursday, 15 October 2020

Which will take out the Car of the Year title for 2020?

The New Zealand Motoring Writers’ Guild has released its shortlist of finalists to compete for the 2020 New Zealand Car of the Year title.

The guild represents more than 20 motoring journalists from around the country.

The Toyota Yaris is one of just two non-SUVs to make the cut this year.

“After many tumultuous months full of Covid-related twists and turns, it will be a welcome relief to farewell what has been a challenging period with the announcement of the 33rd winner of this coveted trophy,” said guild president Richard Edwards.

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The 10 new vehicles in contention for the 2020 award include two small cars – the Ford Fiesta and Toyota Yaris - while there are eight SUV newcomers in contention: the Audi Q3, Kia Seltos, Land Rover Defender, Mazda CX-30, Mercedes-Benz EQC, Mercedes-Benz GLB, Peugeot 2008 and Skoda Kamiq.

“This year’s top-10 reflects the strong influence that SUV and crossover variants now have on the total new vehicle market, so it’s no small wonder these models make up the majority of finalists,” Edwards said.

On average, more than 50 new models from more than 30 different brands are launched in New Zealand every year, but this number was down in 2020 due to the impact of Covid-19.

The 2020 winner will be announced in early December.