After a few months we have known the preliminary list of candidates for the World Car Awards 2021 and a few weeks ago the candidates for car of the year in Portugal were revealed; today we bring you the models selected by Car Of The Year, or COTY, which will elect the international (Europe) car of the year for 2021.
Last year, the award was won by the Peugeot 208, which reached 281 points, beating the Tesla Model 3 (242 points) and the Porsche Taycan (222 points).
How does COTY work?
Founded in 1964 by various specialist European media, Car Of The Year is the oldest award in the automotive industry.
To be selected for this award, the brands are not submitting their models. The models are or are not eligible if they meet some criteria imposed by the regulations.
These criteria include, for example, the launch date or the number of markets where it is sold — the model must be on sale by the end of this year and in at least five European markets.
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This year's edition is attended by 60 judges from 23 countries, including Portugal — represented by Joaquim Oliveira and Francisco Mota — who selected the following 29 models:
- Audi A3
- BMW 2 Series Gran Coupé
- BMW 4 Series
- Citron C4
- CUPRA Formentor
- Dacia Sandero
- Fiat New 500
- Ford Explorer
- Ford Kuga
- Honda and
- Honda Jazz
- Hyunda i10
- Hyundai i20
- Hyundai Tucson
- Kia Sorento
- Land Rover Defender
- Mazda MX-30
- Mercedes-Benz GLA
- Mercedes-Benz GLB
- Mercedes-Benz GLS
- Mercedes-Benz S-Class
- Peugeot 2008
- Polestar 2
- SEAT Leon
- Skoda Octavia
- Toyota Mirai
- Toyota Yaris
- Volkswagen Golf
- Volkswagen ID.3
Place your bets. Which of these will succeed the Peugeot 208?
The winner will be announced on March 2, 2021, in Geneva, Switzerland, but before, less than two weeks away, on January 5, this list of 29 candidates will be reduced to seven finalists.