Autoblog

The fireworks are cold, the confetti cartridges are spent, and the 2008 World Car of the Year Awards have come to an end. Based on standards of merit, value, safety, environmental responsibility, significance, and emotional appeal, the three finalists were the Volvo Ford Mondeo, Mazda2/Demio and Mercedes C-Class. Don't read any further if, for some reason, you don't want to know what the 2008 World Car of the Year is and you haven't seen the photo above: the Mazda 2/Demio. What we earlier called the squat hatch with the aggressive wedge shape and swooping beltline showed its well-proportioned rump (also our term, and Mazda, feel free to quote us) to worthy competition.

In the other categories, the BMW 118d with Efficient Dynamics took home the World Green Car of the Year Award. In what should have been a surprise to no one, the Audi R8 walked off with trophies from both categories in which it was entered: World Performance Car of the Year and World Car Design of the Year. Having taken the awards in both categories last year as well (with the RS4 and TT), Audi knowS how to get the judges on its side. Now if it can get one million buyers on its side this year, that will really be a trophy it can brag about.

With the New York Auto Show just around the corner in late March, the organization behind the "World Car of the Year" Awards has revealed its top three finalists. The top vehicles in each of four categories were chosen by an international panel of 47 automotive journalists reportedly committed to carrying out the process with the "...utmost objectivity, credibility, and integrity." Regardless of how spotless the chosen journalist's driving record is, it's still a subjective vote, so don't be dismayed if your favorite chunk of steel didn't make the list this year. Instead, be pleased that the majority of the vehicles are actually available in the States.

Last month, the list included ten vehicles in each category. This week, the distinguished panel whittled it down to three finalists in each category. Check out the finalists in Design, Performance Car and Green Car after the jump.
2008 World Car of the Year Finalists

Ford Mondeo
Mazda2 / Mazda Demio
Mercedes-Benz C-Class

The World Car of the Year Awards has just concluded with the Lexus LS460 earning the honor of being called the planet's best auto for 2007. The LS460 beat out the Audi TT and new MINI Cooper, which were also finalists. The Audi TT, however, did not walk away empty handed, earning a trophy for World Car Design of the Year. Audi earned yet another honor for World Performance Car of the Year, with the RS4 being handed that honor. The RS4 won out over such heavyweights in world performance as the BMW 335i and Porsche 911 Turbo. Finally, the Mercedes-Benz E320 BLUETEC won the award for World Green Car of the Year, earning bragging rights over rival BMW and its Hydrogen 7, as well as the Volkswagen Polo BlueMotion.

At the New York Auto Show in early April we'll find out which auto has won the coveted World Car of the Year award. We do know, however, it will be either the Audi TT, Lexus LS 460 or new MINI Cooper. The three finalists were recently culled from the list of semi-finalists we brought you back in January. Those ten cars have been pared down to these three, and on April 5th only one will remain.

The Germans (and German-owned) were not only well represented in the list of finalists for World Car of the Year, but also in three other categories for which awards will be given. The finalists for World Performance Car are the Audi RS4, BMW 335i and Porsche 911 Turbo (all German brands). The finalists for 2007 World Green Car are the BMW Hydrogen 7, Mercedes-Benz E320 BLUETEC and Volkswagen Polo BlueMotion (again, all German brands). Lastly, the finalists for the World Car Design of the Year are the Audi TT, Citroen C4 Picasso and Fiat Grande Punto (only one German brand this time, but still). Clearly, German or German-owned brands are the odds on favorite for flying home with some trophy metal.

[Source: WCOTY.com via Winding Road]

The WCOTY awards are kind of like the Miss Universe Pageant. Sure, the universe is bigger than America, but we Yanks just love rooting for our local gals in the Miss America Pageant (Congrats, Miss Oklahoma!). In the same way, we're all a twitter to hear which models have won the North American Car and Truck of the Year awards, but the World Car of the Year awards presented at the New York International Auto Show in April often don't get the same attention (unless you count this). Well, let's change that by actually giving a hoot this year. The top ten finalists for the World Car and World Performance Car of the Year awards were announced today, and you can find both lists in full after the jump.

Audi managed to nab the most spots with the Q7 and TT being finalists for the WCOTY award and the RS4 and S6 on the list for the WPCOTY award. German automakers also dominated the list of finalists for the performance car award, with 6 out of 10 coming from either Audi, BMW or Porsche.

You may be wondering why very few domestics (U.S. domestics, that is) seem to be on either of these lists, and that's because to be eligible for either award a car has to be in production and sold in at least five countries on two continents. A panel of 45 jurors will pick the winners, which will be announced in April at the New York Auto Show.

Check out the full lists after the jump along with the WCOTY award press release.

[Source: WCOTY.com]

BMW continues its indomitable ways with the 3-Series by taking home the trophy for the 2006 World Car of the Year Award presented by the Midway Group. World Car jurors initially chose 27 candidates, which were later whittled down to three: the BMW 3-Series, Mazda MX-5 and Porsche Cayman S.

The WCOTY Award is only one year old, as the inaugural award went to the Audi A6 last year. It’s given away at the New York Auto Show, which unofficially represents the end of the auto show season until the following fall.

Other COTY winners for 2006 include the Porsche Cayman S for World Performance Car, the Honda Civic Hybrid for World Green Car and the Citroen C4 for World Car Design of the Year. 

Check out the full press release regarding the World Car of the Year Awards after the jump…