European Brands Dominate World Car of the Year Finalists

Six of the 10 finalists for the World Car of the Year award and all five of those vying for the top luxury model are from European brands.

Three of the five finalists for performance car honors also are European makes. None of the 10 finalists for the overall car title was a traditional U.S. Big Three-badged model.

The winners, to be selected by a panel of 73 automotive journalists from 23 countries, will be announced in March at the New York auto show.

The finalists for Car of the Year include the Audi A4, BMW X1, Hyundai Tucson, Jaguar XE, Land Rover Discovery Sport, Mazda CX-3 and MX-5 Miata, Mercedes GLC, Skoda Superb and Toyota Prius.

Those contending for the Luxury Car of the Year are the Audi Q7, BMW 7 Series, Jaguar XF, Mercedes GLE Coupe and Volvo XC90. Performance Car of the Year finalists include the Audi R8, Chevrolet Camaro, Honda Civic Type R, Mercedes-AMG C63 coupe and Range Rover Sport SVR.

Five models are competing for Green Car of the Year award: the BMW 330e plug-in hybrid, Chevrolet Volt extended-range hybrid, Toyota Prius hybrid, Toyota Mirai fuel cell car and Volkswagen Passat GTE. Fnalists for the Car Design of the Year are the Cadillac CT6, Mazda CX-3 and MX-5, Jaguar XE and Land Rover Discovery Sport.