Announcing The Winners Of The 2015 World Car Awards

The winners of the 2015 World Car Awards have been announced at this year’s New York International Auto Show and it was Mercedes-Benz that walked away with glee by snapping up three awards that included the much coveted World Car of the Year award.

It was the Mercedes-Benz C-Class that was named as the 2015 World Car of the Year, beating out two other finalists, the Ford Mustang and the Volkswagen Passat. Jurors for the World Car Awards observed that, “Taking its design and technological cues from the S-Class, the C-Class employs an all-new aluminium/steel hybrid platform and updated rear-drive powertrains that delivers levels of refinement, luxury, safety, ride and handling that challenge best-in-class.”

Moving on to the 2015 World Luxury Car Award, the Stuttgart-based company managed to retain the title with its Mercedes-Benz S Coupé that edged out two other finalists in its category, the BMW i8 and Range Rover Autobiography Black LWB. When you have two sound systems by Burmester inside your vehicle and an interior that looks like this, would you have second guessed the winner?

Next up was the 2015 World Performance Car Award that saw the BMW M4 Coupe/M3 Sedan, Jaguar F-Type R Coupe, and the Mercedes-AMG GT. This was the third award that Mercedes-Benz walked away with as the GT came out on top, ending Porsche’s three-year winning streak stretching back to 2012. Jurors noted, “Its on-road presence alone is almost enough to qualify it as a ‘Top 3’ finalist. But in addition to its ruggedly handsome looks it has an impressive spec sheet comprising biturbo 4.0-litre V8 engine, seven speed dual-clutch transmission,  456bhp (minimum)...and much, much more.”

For the 2015 World Car Design of the Year, five world design experts would review a list of candidates and narrow it down to just three finalists for the jurors to decide upon. The winner was the Citroen C4 Cactus with its unique Airbump panels that protect the car from everyday bumps and scrapes. Each Airbump panel is made from supply thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) and includes tiny air capsules that absorb impacts and do not require any maintenance. Sounds like the perfect car for our country then.

Lastly, we have the 2015 World Green Car Award. You would think it would be the Volkswagen Golf GTE or any of the new diesel-hybrid vehicles that have been released. Think again because it was BMW with their i8 that took home the prize after the i3 had won it the year before. The plug-in hybrid eDrive powertrain with a 131hp electric motor driving the front axle and a 231hp TwinPwer 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbo petrol engine driving the rear permits a fuel consumption figure of just 2.1 litres/100km while achieving a century sprint time of just 4.4 seconds. The best of both worlds.

The World Car Awards consists of an international jury that is comprised of 75 top-level automotive journalist from 22 countries around the world selects and votes on each category. Vehicles that are eligible for the overall 2015 World Car award must become available for sale on at least two continents during the period from 1^st January 2014 till 31^st May 2015.

The full list of finalists in each category are as listed below:

2015 World Car of the Year

• BMW 2 Series Active Tourer                
• Citroën C4 Cactus
• Ford Mustang
• Hyundai Genesis
• Jeep Renegade
• Mazda2
• Mercedes-Benz C-Class
• MINI 5 door / MINI 4 door Hard Top
• Nissan Qashqai
• Volkswagen Passat

2015 World Luxury Car

• BMW i8
• BMW X6
• Cadillac ATS Coupe
• Cadillac Escalade/ESV
• Kia K900
• Lexus NX
• Lexus RC
• Lincoln MKC
• Mercedes-Benz S Coupe
• Range Rover Autobiography Black LWB

2015 World Performance Car

• Audi S1
• Audi S3
• Audi TT / TTS
• Bentley Continental GT Speed
• BMWM4 Coupe/M3 Sedan
• Corvette Z06
• Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat
• Jaguar F-TYPE R Coupe
• Lexus RC-F
• Mercedes-Benz AMG GT

2015 World Car Design

• BMW 2 Series Active Tourer
• Citroën C4 Cactus
• Mercedes C-Class
• Porsche Macan
• Volvo XC90

2015 World Green Car

• BMW i8
• Hyundai ix35/Tucson Fuel Cell
• Kia Soul EV
• Volvo XC90 T8 Twin Engine
• Volkswagen Golf GTE