LOS ANGELES – The finalists that will compete for the 2022 North American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Year™ (NACTOY) awards were announced today at the Los Angeles Auto Show. This year, NACTOY’s jurors voted on a competitive and diverse field of 23 semifinalists across three categories – Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle – which were announced earlier this year.
The finalists for each category, in alphabetical order, are:
North American Car of the Year™:
Honda Civic
Lucid Air
Volkswagen Golf Mk VIII (Golf R/Golf GTI)
North American Truck of the Year™:
Ford Maverick
Hyundai Santa Cruz
Rivian R1T
North American Utility Vehicle of the Year™:
Ford Bronco
Genesis GV70
Hyundai IONIQ 5
“These nine vehicles represent an unusually excellent and diverse group of finalists,” said NACTOY president Gary Witzenburg. “From new OEMs to vehicles that have created fresh segments in their categories, these vehicles showcase the automotive industry’s current diversification. This year’s finalists also illustrate how many more electric vehicles are becoming available to customers across multiple vehicle types.”
NACTOY’s awards are determined through a series of three votes by a group of 50 automotive journalists from an array of magazines, newspapers, websites, and television and radio stations in the U.S. and Canada. Founded in 1994, the NACTOY awards are the longest-running new vehicle awards not associated with a single outlet.
“The diverse opinions of our jurors bring together a combination of expertise and individual testing regimens to select these nine outstanding finalists,” said NACTOY Vice President Jack R. Nerad. “This results in a comprehensive and thoughtful selection process unique to NACTOY.”
The jurors, who have tested and evaluated eligible new or substantially changed vehicles that launched this year, vote for their choices based on elements including automotive innovation, design, safety, performance, technology, driver satisfaction and value.
The jury votes were tallied and audited by Deloitte. The selection of nine finalists is the second-to-last step in the year-long evaluation process for the three awards before the final jury vote and the announcement of the winners in January.
Final voting will take place Dec. 30 – Jan. 5, 2022, and the 2022 NACTOY Car, Truck and Utility of the Year winners will be announced in early January. Details regarding the location and format of this event will be provided soon.
Spanish and French versions of this release will be available on NACTOY’s website. For more information about NACTOY and its history: http://northamericancaroftheyear.org.
ABOUT NORTH AMERICAN CAR, TRUCK, AND UTILITY VEHICLE OF THE YEAR™
The awards are intended to recognize the most outstanding new vehicles of the year. These vehicles are benchmarks in their segments based on factors including innovation, design, safety, handling, driver satisfaction and value for the dollar. The organization gives out three awards. They are: “North American Car of the Year™,” “North American Truck of the Year™,” and “North American Utility Vehicle of the Year™.” The awards are unique because they are given by an independent jury of automotive journalists from the United States and Canada instead of being given by a single publication, website, radio or television station.
Source: North American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Year