
The South African Guild of Mobility Journalists (SAGMJ) has announced the 25 finalists for the 2022 South African Car of the Year (COTY) competition.
“This year’s COTY finalists show us the tremendous speed of research and development in the automotive industry,” said Carl Wepener, chairman of the SAGMJ.
“The finalists represent the best of the best in South Africa, and we are eager to see who the winners of this year’s competition will be.”
Categories
The 2022 COTY competition will see winners crowned in one of ten categories, as well as an overall winner announced.
The 10 categories comprise:
- Budget
- Compact
- Compact family
- Midsize
- Premium
- Luxury
- Performance
- New Energy
- Adventure SUV
- 4×4 Double Cab
The most competitive categories this year, according to the SAGMJ, will be the midsize and performance segments.
“The Midsize category comprises the Audi A3, Hyundai’s Palisade, Santa Fe and Staria, and the Mercedes Benz C-Class. BMW’s 128ti and M3, Porsche 911 Carrera GTS, Toyota GR Yaris, and Volkswagen Golf GTI make up the finalists in the Performance category,” said the organisation.
“The Adventure SUV and 4×4 Double Cab categories are just as competitive this year as the 2021 COTY competition, where a newcomer in the class is competing against an established, locally manufactured rival.”
Toyota is leading the pack with six finalists in five different categories, while vehicles including the Honda Fit, Land Rover Defender V8, and Haval Jolion “missed the cut-off mark by only one point,” said the SAGMJ.
Finalists
The 25 finalists for the SAGMJ’s 2022 COTY competition are as follows:
Compact
- Hyundai i20
- Kia Sonet
- Peugeot 208
- Toyota Urban Cruiser
Compact family
- Chery Tiggo 4 Pro
- Hyundai Kona
- Toyota Corolla Cross
Midsize
- Audi A3
- Hyundai Santa Fe
- Hyundai Staria
- Hyundai Palisade
- Mercedes-Benz C-Class
Luxury
- Mercedes-AMG GLE53
Performance
- BMW 128ti
- BMW M3 Competition
- Porsche 911 Carrera GTS
- Toyota GR Yaris
- VW Golf GTI
New Energy
- Honda Fit Hybrid
- Lexus IS
- Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid
Adventure SUV
- Isuzu mu-X
- Toyota Land Cruiser 300
4×4 Double Cab
- Nissan Navara
- Peugeot Landtrek
Importantly, the premium category in this year’s COTY competition has been left out.
The final round of scoring for the finalists will conclude in April, with the winners announced in May.
“This year again will see a Motor Enthusiast’s Choice (public vote) as introduced during last year’s competition,” said the SAGMJ.
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