Drive Times five
Former NZ Car of the Year winners
October is the time of the year for motoring journalists to look back on the previous 12 months and choose the best new models for the New Zealand Car of the Year award (NZCOTY). We won’t know this year’s NZCOTY until December 12. But today, we take a look at the winners from the past five years. Mercedes-Benz E-Class
The 2016 NZCOTY and reigning top-dog is also Mercedes-Benz’s ‘‘technology leader’’ and, boy, does it show. Packed with hi-tech features – most notably thoroughly excellent semi-autonomous driver assist systems – the E-Class still holds up well a year on. It’s a deeply impressive and convincing package that has only recently been threatened by a car that features in this year’s NZCOTY top 10 – the equally hi-tech and stylish BMW 5-series.
The interior of the E-Class is still notch above the competition (yes, even the 5-series) and the addition of the extreme Mercedes-AMG E 63 to the range has only made it more impressive.
BMW i3
The first electric vehicle to take the COTY gong (in 2015), the BMW i3 remains one of our personal favourite EVs.
When BMW set out to create a standalone range of electric vehicles, the German company built them completely from the wheels up, as opposed to simply electrifying an existing vehicle from its range, and that paid off. The resulting i3 (and the mighty i8) are truly innovative and forward-looking EVs.
Mazda3
Despite the startling rise of the SUV that had begun in earnest in 2014 (and continues to this day) the Mazda3 still managed to wave the flag for that traditional Kiwi favourite, the small hatch.
With its bold looks, high level of safety technology and impressive quality, the Mazda3 was a popular choice then and continues to be a popular choice today, even though it faces even stronger competition from within the Mazda ranks: both the CX3 and this year’s finalist, the impressive CX-5, are SUVs attacking it from both sides.
Volkswagen Golf
On the verge of celebrating its 40th birthday, the seventh generation of the venerable Volkswagen Golf took out the award in 2013 in a rather effortless fashion. Its familiar blend of fantastic handling and eager engines won over the judges, but the newest version of the popular hatch also brought a new level of quality and equipment that cemented its victory.
The seventh-gen Golf is still on sale today (albeit with a number of tweaks in the intervening years), with an allelectric version about to be added in New Zealand. So it’s more relevant than ever.
Toyota 86
Just to prove that the Car of the Year isn’t all about sensible transport, earnest EVs or hi-tech luxury barges, a fantastically fun sports car took out the 2012 award in a victory for irrational and emotional car purchases everywhere.
But the Toyota 86 was a very worthy of the award, proving that not only was there an appetite in the market for a small, modestly powered and well-priced sports coupe with brilliant handling and great looks – but also that Toyota could still build one. Actually, scratch that last sentiment, because it was pretty much Subaru doing that.