The World Car of the Year (WCOTY) jury has announced its top ten finalists in this year’s competition. The winners will be announced at a press conference co-hosted by Bridgestone at the New York International Auto Show on Thursday, April 21, 2011.
Prior to that the top three finalists in all the award categories will be announced at the Geneva Motor Show on March 1st, 2011.
A jury of 66 experienced international automotive journalists, including CAR’s editor, Hannes Oosthuizen, selected the following top ten finalists in both categories by secret ballot, based on their experience with each candidate as part of their professional work.
The international accounting firm KPMG then tabulated the jurors' ballots and announced the top ten finalists in both categories.
The 2011 World Car of the Year will be selected from the following ten cars listed in alphabetical order:
. Audi A1
. Audi A8
. BMW 5 Series
. BMW X3
. Jaguar XJ
. Jeep Grand Cherokee
. Mercedes-Benz SLS
. Nissan LEAF
. Porsche Cayenne
. Volvo S60 / V60
The 2011 World Performance Car will be chosen from one of these top ten finalists:
. Aston Martin Rapide
. Audi RS5 Coupe
. Cadillac CTS-V Coupe
. Ferrari 458 Italia
. Lamborghini Gallardo SUPERLEGGERA
. Mercedes-Benz S63 / CL 63 AMG
. Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG
. Porsche 911 GT2RS
. Porsche 911 Turbo
. Renault Megane III / Renault Sport
Previous World Car of the Year winners were the Volkswagen Polo in 2010, the Volkswagen Golf in 2009, the Mazda2 / Mazda Demio in 2008, the Lexus LS460 in 2007, the BMW 3-Series in 2006, and the Audi A6 in 2005.
Previous World Performance Car winners were the Audi R8 V10 in 2010, the Nissan GT-R in 2009, the Audi R8 in 2008, the Audi RS4 in 2007 and the Porsche Cayman S in 2006.
Now in their eighth year, the annual World Car awards have become one of the world's most prestigious, credible and significant programs of its kind.
