2015 North American Car and Truck of the Year Finalists Announced
Finalists for the North American Car and Truck of the Year Awards were just announced in Detroit.
Making the official announcement was Mark Phelan, NACTOY juror and auto critic at the Detroit Free Press. “The finalists for 2015 truck of the year are the Chevrolet Colorado, Ford F-150 and Lincoln MKC,” he said.
Arguably the Chevy and Ford were each a shoo-in to make it on this short list given their significance but Lincoln’s new small crossover was something of a shocker. Jim McCraw, freelance automotive journalist and another NACOTY juror said he was pleasantly surprised this little Lincoln made the cut.
Ford truck spokesman Mike Levine said, “[We’re] always proud to be honored with recognition. It means a lot to the team.” And customers seem to have noticed as well. The new, aluminum-intensive F-150 appears to be off to a solid start.
SEE ALSO: 2015 AutoGuide.com Truck of the Year Award
As for cars, Phelan once again opened the sealed envelope and made this important announcement. He said, “The finalists are the Ford Mustang, the Hyundai Genesis Sedan and the Volkswagen Golf and GTI.” This short list closely mirrors the 2015 AutoGuide.com Car of the Year finalists. In addition to these two models we also included the Audi A3 and Subaru WRX STI.
“We’ve had a really good year so far,” said Jeannine Ginivan, manager of corporate communications at Volkswagen. The Golf family has already won several significant awards including Motor Trend Car of the Year.
SEE ALSO: 2015 AutoGuide.com Car of the Year Nominee, VW GTI
“Me, as a mom, I can fit car seats in the back,” Ginivan said, appreciating the vehicle’s versatility. But she also acknowledged that others will appreciate the performance provided by the GTI.
The new Hyundai Genesis sedan is a winner, too, offering dynamite luxury, sharp styling and value pricing. “You don’t want to ever assume you’ll make any list,” said Hyundai spokesman Phil Floraday. “The competition doesn’t get any easier,” he said.
The 2015 North American Car and Truck of the Year award winners will be announced at the Detroit Auto Show next month.
Born and raised in metro Detroit, Craig was steeped in mechanics from childhood. He feels as much at home with a wrench or welding gun in his hand as he does behind the wheel or in front of a camera. Putting his Bachelor's Degree in Journalism to good use, he's always pumping out videos, reviews, and features for AutoGuide.com. When the workday is over, he can be found out driving his fully restored 1936 Ford V8 sedan. Craig has covered the automotive industry full time for more than 10 years and is a member of the Automotive Press Association (APA) and Midwest Automotive Media Association (MAMA).
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Watch Autoguide pick the Golf/ GTI...Why is the genesis on here? Predicting the usual bad results/ reviews that I come to expect from autoguide. The Mustang should easily win and the WRX is just filler...The A3 raised the bar in its new segment. The Golf/ GTI is a fanboy car.
Why wouldn't the Hyundai Genesis be a contender?