The 2021 World Car Awards have been announced. Here are the worthy winners..
Volkswagen claimed its fifth World Car of the Year title, as the ID.4 was adjudged the World Car of the Year for 2021. The top three contenders included the Toyota GR Yaris and Honda e; however, it was the all-electric German that claimed the overall title. The Vee-Dub scored 798 points to secure top honours, which was considerably clear of the Honda and the Toyota, at 742 and 732 points respectively.
Over 93 jurors from around the globe voted to select the winners in different categories, which included six well-known personalities from the Indian automotive fraternity, including our editor Dhruv Behl. Apart from the World Car of the Year, the World Car Awards has four other categories – Car Design, Luxury Car, Performance Car, and Urban Car.
The Land Rover Defender bagged the World Car Design of the Year Award for 2021, beating the Honda e and Mazda MX-30, which came second and third respectively. With 299 points on the board, the Land Rover Defender was the clear favourite of the jurors from 28 countries. The Honda e and Mazda MX-30 managed to score 239 points and 197 points respectively. The Polestar 2 and the Porsche 911 Turbo rounded out the top-five in this category.
Honda may have missed the World Car of the Year and the Design of the Year trophies, but the brand did take home the Urban Car of the Year 2021 title for the Honda e. This is the first time Honda has won the Urban Car of the Year title since the introduction of the category in 2017. The Japanese offering bettered the Honda Jazz / Fit and Toyota GR Yaris. The Hyundai i10 (Grand i10) and the i20 were also part of the final shortlist.
This year, the World Performance Car of the Year category saw a variety of cars competing to claim the tile. The top three contenders for the title were the Toyota GR Yaris, Audi RS Q8, and the Porsche 911 Turbo. However, it was Porsche that took home the trophy for the remarkable 992 911 Turbo. This is the second consecutive Performance Car of the Year win for the Stuttgart camp, after last year’s win for the Taycan.
Beating the Land Rover Defender and Volvo Polestar 2, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class took the title of the World Luxury Car for 2021. The S-Class made its international debut in 2020, taking the luxury quotient up a notch. Apart from the revised exterior design and the increased space inside the cabin, the new S-Class also flaunts more creature comforts, like adjusting the driver seat position with the help of face / voice recognition and using sensors to illuminate dark areas in the cabin. The S-Class is expected to make its way to India later this year.
The World Car Awards committee also honoured Akio Toyoda, President and CEO, Toyota Motor Corporation, with the prestigious World Car Person of the Year award.
While the World Car Awards are announced at the New York International Motor Show every year, for the last two years, it has been conducted online via a live stream because of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
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