World Car of the Year Announces Top 10 Finalists

NEW YORK, Jan. 31, 2007 -- From an initial entry list of twenty- eight (28) new vehicles from all over the world, a short list of ten finalists for the third annual World Car of the Year (WCOTY) awards were announced by the international accounting firm KPMG. The winners of the 2007 WCOTY will be unveiled during Press Preview at the upcoming New York International Auto Show (NYIAS) on Thursday, April 5, 2007.

Vehicles are selected and voted on by an international jury panel comprised of 45 top-level automotive journalists from around the world. To be eligible, the car must be in production, and sold in at least five countries on two continents.

World Car - Top Ten Finalists:

The following Top Ten World Car finalists are listed below in alphabetical order:

  Audi Q7                           Jaguar XK
  Audi TT                           Lexus LS 460
  Citroen C4 Picasso                Mercedes CL
  Citroen C6                        MINI
  Fiat Grande Punto                 Suzuki SX4 / Fiat Sedici

  World Performance Car - Top Ten Finalists:
  In addition, the following Top Ten World Performance Car finalists are:

  Audi RS4                          Jaguar XKR
  Audi S6                           Mazda 3 MPS / Mazdaspeed3
  BMW 335i                          Porsche 911 GT3
  BMW M / Z4 M Coupe/Roadster       Porsche 911 Turbo
  Ferrari 599 GTB                   Renault Clio Renault Sport

The jurors' next steps are to re-evaluate the "Top Ten" cars in the above categories in preparation for a final round of voting on March 1st. Jury members will specifically rate each vehicle in terms of overall merit, value, safety, environmental responsibility, emotional appeal, and significance. KPMG will tabulate the vote results and the top three finalists will be announced no later than Thursday, March 8th, 2007

There are no Top Ten finalists for World Green Car or for World Design of the Year. Instead, jurors will vote in those categories on March 1st. The Top Three finalists in all awards categories will then be announced on Thursday, March 8th.

The 2007 World Car of the Year, as well as the winners of the World Performance Car, World Green Car and World Car Design of the Year titles will all be declared on Thursday, April 5, 2007 during a press conference to be held at the New York International Auto Show.

"Announcing the annual World Car of the Year awards at the New York show is a fitting finale to the auto show season that begins each fall with either the Paris or Frankfurt motor shows," said Gerry Malloy, co-chair, WCOTY. "Next, it's on to Tokyo in alternating years. The Detroit show takes center stage in January while Geneva claims the spotlight in March. Finally, in April, the season reaches its exciting climax at the New York International Auto Show."