Car Of The Year

The wait is almost over for announcement of Australia’s most prestigious and coveted new car award, Car of the Year (COTY). The winner of the 2005 COTY will be announced tomorrow (Jan 24).

Established in January 1964, COTY is the longest continuously-run award of its type in the world. Awarded annually, COTY has become a keystone in the local marketplace. Winning the award has a significant impact on new cars' reputations... And, often, sales.

Judged by a ten-strong panel of Wheels magazine staffers, contributors and invited experts, the 2005 COTY will be announced tomorrow, Tuesday, January 24.

It will be the 43th time the award has been adjudged including the years in which the award was withheld (1972, '79 and '86).

Strict criteria ensure that only true 'new' models can be judged each year. Further rules including sales numbers and safety considerations meant that only 27 new models were eligible for the 2005 award. After a further examination against Wheels' established award criteria, the field was wittled down to 21 nominations (in alphabetical order):

Six high-profile models were eligible for judging but not nominated for the week-long award final selection program. These were: Kia Rio, Mercedes-Benz A-Class, Nissan Pathfinder, Range Rover Sport, Renault Megane Coupe-Cabriolet and Suzuki Grand Vitara.

Additional variants of existing cars and rebadged models excluded from this year's judging included the likes of Audi's A3 Sportback, but more notably, Ford's revamp of the BF Falcon and SY Territory ranges and Holden's 'new' Daewoo-sourced Barina (nee Kalos) and Viva (nee Lacetti).

Safety considerations, in particular the provision of lap-sash seatbelts for every seating position in every model, saw one car excluded from judging -- the SsangYong Stavic.

Full coverage and detailed judging of the 2005 COTY will feature in the February 2006 edition of magazine, out Wednesday, January 25, 2006.