Best Car of 2008?

Which car would you expect to be the best car? 2008 delivered us the new VW, Ford, & Holden. Great cars in their own right, but unfortunately none of them won.  A new Mazda won, and with plenty of good reasons.

At the World Car of the Year 2008, Mazda2 (or AKA the Mazda Demio in Japan) was the overall winner. The top three contenders for 2008 World Car of the Year title were, in alphabetical order, the Ford Mondeo, the Mazda2/Mazda Demio and the Mercedes-Benz C-Class.  Previous World Car of the Year winners were the Lexus LS460 in 2007, the BMW 3-Series in 2006 and the Audi A6 in 2005.

The Mazda2/Mazda Demio was chosen from an initial entry list of thirty-nine (39) entries nominated by forty-seven (47) World Car jurors from twenty-four (24) countries throughout the world. Each juror was appointed by the World Car Steering Committee on the basis of his or her expertise, experience, credibility, and influence. Each juror typically drives and evaluates new vehicles on a regular basis as part of their professional work.

WCOTY jurors observed that, “This fresh Mazda compact makes the first-generation one-box-ish Mazda2/Demio fade into the mists of time even more so. The new version is exactly that - completely new; particularly on the outside. The two-door sportier look was recently unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show and reviews around the world have been primarily one big ‘thumbs up’. Consumers will be drawn to the new Mazda compact because of its very appealing looks and high levels of standard equipment for the price”.

“We are honoured to receive this prestigious award recognizing the Mazda2/Mazda Demio as the 2008 World Car of the Year”,,” said Dan Morris, Mazda’s senior managing executive officer in charge of Marketing, Sales and Customer Service. “This is wonderful recognition which Mazda2 car owners and Mazda employees alike can celebrate worldwide.

“The all-new Mazda2 is exceeding our highest expectations, demonstrating it can compete and win against the best compact cars in any market in the world and is earning glowing praise at home and globally, having also won a number Car of the Year awards around the globe, including Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Greece, New Zealand, and the RJC Car of the Year award in Japan.”

Now in their fifth year, the annual World Car awards have become one of the most prestigious and credible programs of their type in the world.

Mazda will promote the Zoom-Zoom brand by displaying twelve vehicles from five model lines, which represent Mazda’s core products that are scheduled for launch at the 2007 Guangzhou Motor Show.

Results in Australia

In Australia, The Best Cars awards are in their eighth year and are decided by Australia's auto clubs, which have a combined membership of more than 6.5 million people.

Australia's Best Cars 2008 winners:

Small car: Volkswagen Polo TDI
Mid-size car under $28,000: Honda Civic VTi
Mid-size car over $28,000: Ford Mondeo TDCi
Large car: Toyota Aurion AT-X
People mover: Honda Odyssey Luxury
Sports car: Volkswagen Golf R32
Luxury sports car: BMW M3
Prestige car: Lexus IS250
Luxury car: Lexus GS450h
Recreational 4WD: Nissan X-Trail ST
Luxury 4WD: BMX X5 Diesel
All-terrain 4WD: Land Rover Discovery 3 SE TDV6