LOS ANGELES, Nov. 18, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- MOTORTREND announced today the winners of MOTORTREND Awards "Golden Calipers" for Car of the Year, Truck of the Year, and SUV of the Year. This year's award winners stood out against a tight group of finalists, but ultimately bested the other candidates to win the coveted award. MOTORTREND revealed the award winners during an exclusive ceremony featuring an audience of industry insiders and celebrity guests at the MOTORTREND headquarters in Los Angeles.
MotorTrend Reveals Its 2020 "Of The Year" Award Winners
MotorTrend Reveals Its 2020 "Of The Year" Award Winners
MotorTrend Reveals Its 2020 "Of The Year" Award Winners
MotorTrend Reveals Its 2020 "Of The Year" Award Winners
"We are thrilled to honor the best of the best in the industry," said MOTORTREND SVP of Content and Editor-in-Chief Edward Loh. "This year's coveted Car of the Year, Truck of the Year, SUV of the Year, and Person of the Year represent some of the most well-deserving and innovative recipients we have had yet."
This year's award winners were evaluated and selected for excelling in MOTORTREND's six key category criteria: safety, efficiency, value, advancement in design, engineering excellence, and performance of the intended function. MOTORTREND's staff of expert testers and evaluators were assisted by guest Car of the Year judges Ian Callum, retired design director for Jaguar Cars; and Chris Theodore, former engineering executive for both Ford and Chrysler. Special guest judges for SUV of the Year were Johan de Nysschen, former head of Audi of America, Infiniti Motor Co., and Cadillac division; and Tom Gale, former head of Chrysler design.
The details of the award winners are:
2020 MOTORTREND Car of the Year Winner: Chevrolet Corvette After extensive testing and evaluating the top cars for the 2020 MOTORTREND Car of the Year, the mid-engine Chevrolet Corvette was the clear choice for its ingenuity in creating the 8th generation of the legendary American sports car.
Judges highly praised the Corvette for its quiet cabin, quality interior design, and everyday function. Even as the Corvette hit 60 mph in 2.8 seconds, the cabin remained remarkably quiet for a sports car of its ability. The Corvette's interior design was one area the judges lauded for its depth of quality and features at its price point.
"The C8 represents the biggest step-change since the original Acura NSX in terms of being a usable everyday mid-engine supercar," said MOTORTREND International Bureau Chief Angus MacKenzie. "It brings the Corvette closer to the Porsche 911 in terms of being an attainable and credible 24/7 supercar than any time since the '60s."
The 2020 Corvette's engineering excellence features world-class performance combined with shockingly good ride comfort and around-town manners. However, value is where the Corvette shined above all. Where else can one find a supercar with such power and poise at an everyday price point?
2020 MOTORTREND Truck of the Year Winner: Ram Heavy Duty Not many trucks can combine the perfect balance of strength, roughness, and comfort like the 2020 MOTORTREND Truck of the Year, the Ram Heavy Duty. During the judges' evaluation, the Ram proved to be a top performer with the capability to complete any function and versatility to accommodate any job.
The Ram Heavy Duty diesel's 400 horsepower and 1,000 lb-ft of torque is the first mainstream heavy-duty truck to crack the four-digit torque mark. Plus, it's an extremely versatile truck that easily adapts to its owner's needs and the environment, and its stylish interior is several grades above that of the competition. The Ram test units proved capable at towing, hauling, off-roading, and driving unladen.
Just because this is a hardcore truck, the new Ram HD didn't lose its clean, purposeful, and modern look. "This is how luxury should feel," said MotorTrend en Español Managing Editor Miguel Cortina. "No other truck on the market can beat it."
2020 MOTORTRENDSUV of the Year Winner: Kia Telluride An SUV is meant to adapt to the lifestyle of the modern family, something that the 2020 MOTORTREND SUV of the Year winner, Kia Telluride, does seamlessly. For a long time, Kia has produced some of the most economical and functional vehicles for American families, and now Kia has created a flagship SUV that raises the bar for other three-row sport-utility vehicles.
Kia Telluride's smooth drive, sophisticated look, and multifaceted function helped garner seven first-place votes from our 11 judges. The Telluride comfortably punches above its price point in terms of ride, refinement, and low noise levels.
Assembled in West Point, Georgia, the 2020 Kia Telluride is one of the most compelling family SUVs, loaded with standard equipment, spacious seating, and refined driving manners, all at an astonishingly reasonable price to fit the family's budget. "It just does everything right," MOTORTREND Features Editor Scott Evans said. "It's quiet, comfortable, smooth, stylish, and affordable. What more could you ask for?"
2020 MOTORTREND Person of the Year Winner: Peter Schreyer, President and Head of Design Management, Hyundai Motor Group This year's Person of the Year is the German designer who left Volkswagen Group in 2006 to become chief design officer for Kia. MOTORTREND is honored to recognize Peter Schreyer, the unflappable man in black, whose success in changing the perception of the Kia brand gave him more responsibility as one of three Hyundai Group presidents, overseeing long-term design vision for the South Korean automaker.
It's been quite a run for Schreyer. The 2010 Optima was the first Kia designed under his direction. The upscale sedan with its signature grille wouldn't have been out of place with a BMW roundel on its hood, and it was the catalyst for transformation. Since then, Schreyer has created hit after hit. The second coming of the Soul appealed to the elusive millennial buyer. He expanded Kia's breadth with the K900 luxury sedan, the Stinger sport coupe, and the premium-on-a-budget Kia Rio subcompact. Schreyer's current vision is seen in the upcoming Hyundai Sonata, the three-row Hyundai Palisade SUV, the gorgeous Genesis Essentia concept, the Genesis G70 (our 2019 Car of the Year), and the 2020 MOTORTREND SUV of the Year Kia Telluride.
Schreyer is only the third automotive designer to be honored by the Royal College of Art, following Sergio Pininfarina and Giorgetto Giugiaro. It's just another endorsement of his talent for creating stunning vehicles in one of the greatest brand turnarounds in automotive history. Schreyer once said he wishes he could be a painter. The MOTORTREND 2020 Person of the Year has taken a Korean canvas and created a masterpiece.
ABOUT MOTORTREND MOTORTREND®, a media brand of MotorTrend Group, was founded in 1949 and is internationally recognized as one of the leading brands in the automotive category. The MOTORTREND brand is composed of Discovery's MotorTrend Network, formerly Velocity; MotorTrend magazine; the award-winning website MotorTrend.com; MotorTrend App subscription video on-demand service; MotorTrend Auto Shows; MotorTrend Audio; MotorTrend en Español; MotorTrend India; and the renowned MOTORTREND Car of the Year, SUV of the Year, Truck of the Year, Person of the Year, and Best Driver's Car awards programs.
ABOUT MOTORTREND GROUP MotorTrend Group is the largest automotive media company in the world, bringing together Discovery's fast-growing MotorTrend TV, formerly Velocity, and a vast automotive digital, direct-to-consumer, social, and live event portfolio, including MOTORTREND, HOT ROD, ROADKILL, AUTOMOBILE, and more than 20 other industry-leading brands. With a monthly audience of 26 million across web, TV, and print, and 110 million social followers, culminating in 2 billion monthly content views across all platforms, the company encompasses television's #1 network for automotive superfans, a leading automotive YouTube Channel, and the MotorTrend App, the only auto-dedicated subscription video-on-demand service. MotorTrend serves to embrace, entertain, and empower the motoring world.
Media Contact: Rob Quigley Sr. PR and Social Media Manager MotorTrend Group [email protected] 310-363-4086
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