The Hyundai Elantra is the 2012 North American Car of the Year and the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque is the 2012 North American Truck of the Year.The winners were revealed Monday morning at a news conference at the North American International Auto Show. The winners were chosen by a jury of 50 automotive journalists from the United States and Canada.
The awards are unique in the United States because instead of being given by a single media outlet they are awarded by a coalition of automotive journalists from the United States and Canada who represent magazines, television, radio, newspapers and web sites.
The awards are designed to recognize the most outstanding new vehicles of the year. These vehicles are benchmarks in their segments based on factors including innovation, comfort, design, safety, handling, driver satisfaction and value for the dollar.
It is the second win for Hyundai. In 2009 the Genesis won. The Sonata was one of three finalists last year.It was the first win for Land Rover although Land Rovers were finalists twice before.The jurors gave the Elantra 174 points, the Passat 161 and the Focus 155.The jurors gave the Evoque 254 points, the CR-V 142 and the X3 94.
