JOHANNESBURG - The 2020 AutoTrader South African Car of the Year competition has kicked into gear with the announcement of 48 qualifying cars, and you can have a direct impact on the eventual outcome by casting your vote
. You also stand a chance to win one of five R5000 prizes.
Public voting has already commenced, but best you hurry as it closes at midnight on Sunday, November 24.
A total of 48 cars, all launched between November 1, 2018 and October 31, 2019, qualify for the Car of the Year title, and they also stand a chance to win an award in one of seven categories, namely: Family, Leisure, Lifestyle, Premium Car, Premium SUV, Sports/Performance, and Urban.
But for the time being the focus is on whittling the 49 car qualifying list down to 20 vehicles that will go through to the semi-finalist stage, and members of the public are playing a key role in this process.
“We really want members of the public to participate in the 2020 AutoTrader Car of the Year competition. While the expertise of the 27 highly qualified expert motoring journalists is essential to the credibility of the competition, we value the input of members of public – since they vote with their wallets by purchasing these cars,” said South African Guild of Motoring Journalists (SAGMJ) chairman Rubin van Niekerk.
The semi-finalist list will be announced on November 25. Thereafter, voting for the finalists will take place. This will be followed by the test days in March 2020, when the 27 motoring journalists will put the vehicles through their paces. The category and overall winners will be announced in April 2020.
These are the 48 qualifying cars as verified as having been launched in the last year, but the SAGMJ Validation Committee:
Make
Model
Audi
Q3
Audi
A1
Audi
Q8
BMW
8-series
BMW
X4
BMW
X5
BMW
X7
BMW
3-Series
BMW
Z4
Citroen
C3
Citroen
C3 Aircross
Citroen
C5 Aircross
Ferrari
F8 Tributo
Ford
Everest
Ford
Ranger
Ford
Ranger Raptor
Ford
Mustang
Hyundai
Atos
Hyundai
Sante Fe
Jaguar Land Rover
Jaguar I-PACE
Jaguar Land Rover
Range Rover Evoque
JMC
Vigus 5
Kia
Sportage
Lexus
UX
Lexus
RC F
Mahindra
XUV300
Mazda
Mazda3
Mercedes-Benz
B-Class
Mercedes-Benz
A-Class Sedan
Mercedes-Benz
CLA
Mercedes-Benz
AMG G 63
Mercedes-Benz
AMG CLS 53
Mercedes-Benz
GLE
Mercedes-Benz
X-Class
Mitsubishi
Eclipse Cross
Mitsubishi
Triton
Peugeot
108
Peugeot
5008
Porsche
Macan
Porsche
911
Renault
Koleos
Subaru
Forester
Suzuki
Ertiga
Suzuki
Swift Sport
Toyota
Corolla Hatch
Toyota
RAV4
Toyota
Supra
Volkswagen
T-Cross