Lexus and VW triple winners at 2006 Best cars

Lexus, Volkswagen and Honda are all multiple award winners in the 2006 Australia's Best Cars awards. Announced in Sydney yesterday, the 12 categories were snapped up by just six marques -- the above, and single-award winners Toyota, Subaru and Land Rover.

Lexus and Volkswagen claimed half the category wins between them. The Toyota-owned Japanese prestige marque took out Best Prestige Car, Best Luxury Car and Best Luxury Four Wheel Drive with its IS250, GS450h hybrid and RX350 Sports Luxury softroaders.

Boasting record sales (almost 36 per cent up year-on-year), re-energised German brand Volkswagen's three winners were: Best Small Car -- Polo TDI; Best Mid-size Car Over $28,000 -- Jetta TDI and  Best Sports Car -- Golf GTI.

Honda's two gongs went to the Civic VTi for Best Mid-size Car Under $28,000 and the Odyssey Luxury for Best People Mover. The 'two-box' Odyssey has somewhat of a mortgage on the category -- it is the third consecutive year it has won the award. This is a Best Cars record.

However, the Odyssey's performance is topped in terms of total wins by Subaru's sole winner in 2006, the Forester X. Winner of the Best Recreational Four Wheel Drive, 2006 marks the fifth time the Forester has taken out the gong.

Toyota's Aurion AT-X was the winner of Best Large Car and Audi took out Best Luxury Sports Car with its RS4 quattro.

The final category winner in the 2006 Australia's Best Car awards was the Land Rover Discovery 3 SE. The big Brit took out Best All Terrain Four Wheel Drive.

Australia's Best Car awards were established in 2000 by Australia's seven auto clubs: NRMA, RACV, RACQ, RAA, RAC, RACT and AANT. They are awarded by a panel of nine judges from the various state motoring bodies. Cars are scored across three main criteria -- Value for Money, Design and Function and On the Road Performance -- and scores weighted according to buyers' preferences in various categories. The three highest scoring cars in each class are then judged in back-to-back testing.

To visit the awards' website, click here.

Photo (i) caption: Lexus corporate manager John Roca (left) and Australia's Best Car Awards chief judge, the RACV's Ernest Litera.

Photo (ii) caption: Alan Evans, President of the NRMA, with Jutta Dierks, Managing Director, Volkswagen Group Australia.