World Car of the Year contenders named

Electric and hybrid cars dominate the field for this year’s judging of the 2022 World Car of the Year awards.

High-profile electric arrivals for Australia, including the Audi Q4 e-tron, BMW i4, Hyundai IONIQ 5 and Kia EV6 are on a list of 19 contenders that will be judged for the 2022 WCOTY prize.

But there are also some classy old-school internal-combustion arrivals, led by the Subaru BRZ and Toyota GR 86 sports car twins, to fight for votes from the 100-plus motoring experts who will decide the results.

Highlighting the worldwide focus on electrification, there are eight contenders for the new World Electric Car award, from the Audi e-tron GT and BMW iX and iX3 to the Volvo C40 Recharge.

But one WCOTY winner already looks a near-certainty, as the Hyundai Staria is the only contender – for now – in the class for World Urban Car.

The first stage of the judging process begins with the announcement of the contenders, but the list can be updated until December 1 under the rules for the contest, which require production of at least 10,000 vehicles, sales on two continents and a price below the luxury level in primary markets.

As usual, the award includes a luxury class – with seven contenders including the new Land Rover Defender 90 – and the sports car class, with eight hopefuls from the Hyundai Elantra N (to be sold in Australia as the Hyundai i30 N sedan) through to the BMW M3 and M4 and the Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT.

The key purpose of the awards, according to the World COTY judging panel, is “a dual mission of celebrating the best of today while embracing the best of tomorrow”.

So, apart from the awards, judges – there are two from Australia, with another two European-based Aussies – are also charged with highlighting the road to future mobility.

With the provisional contenders now public, the next step of the WCOTY process is back-to-back test drives in Los Angeles in November – for judges who are not grounded by COVID-19 restrictions – ahead of the announcement of winners at the 2022 New York International Auto Show on April 13 next year.