Hyundai has scored a major coup, beating a field of the world’s best cars to win the 2007 CARSguide Car of the Year award with its diesel-powered i30 hatchback. Praised by the judging panel for its style, handling and performance features, the i30 was also voted CARSguide Green Car of the Year in recognition of its small turbodiesel’s frugal and eco-friendly performance.
Underscoring the i30 CRDi’s eco-ability was its win last month in the Panasonic Solar Challenge Greenfleet category where it travelled from Darwin to Adelaide using an average of 3.2 litres per 100km.
It is the first time a Korean-made car has won a national car of the year award in Australia. The i30 CRDi secured its place in motoring history against a stellar field of finalists ranging from a $19,000 hatch to a $110,000 luxury sedan.
Finishing second in the voting was VW’s Golf GT TSi ``twin charger´’ just ahead of the second-generation Mazda2 Maxx.
Judged on criteria ranging from styling, safety, innovation, value, functionality, build quality and performance, the finalists were studied, dissected and scored in a variety of situations.
The cars were driven through a range of environments and road conditions, such as city, freeway, highway and country towns, to evaluate how competent they were in critical driving situations. Steering, handling, braking, and acceleration were also rigorously evaluated*.
Finalists were also put through their paces on Goulburn’s Wakefield Park race circuit, enabling the judges to assess grip thresholds, tyre balance, chassis performance and suspension.
The winning i30 CRDi SX chosen by CARSguide judges featured Hyundai´s Protectz pack option, comprising electronic stability control (ESP) plus side and curtain airbags.
The Hyundai i30 CRDi was determined the winner on an overall points basis, receiving 94 out of a possible 99 points. The judges assessed the cars against 10 criteria, before ranking the finalists from 1-11 (1 being the best) to determine the winning Car of the Year 2007.
Final Rankings
Hyundai i30 CRDi (94pts)
VW Golf GT TSi (86pts)
Mazda2 Maxx (75pts)
Mitsubishi Lancer VR (71pts)
Mercedes-Benz C280 (66pts)
Holden Ute SV6 (56pts)
Ford Mondeo Zetec (37pts)
Subaru Impreza RS (32pts)
BMW X5 3.0d (31pts)
BMW 335i sedan (25pts)
Volvo C30 T5 (21pts).
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