Volkswagen’s ID.4 crossover has been named World Car of the Year for 2021 by an international jury consisting of 93 motoring journalists from 28 countries.
This is the third time that a fully electric car has won the award, following the Jaguar I-Pace in 2019 and the Nissan Leaf in 2011 World Car of the Year, and it’s also the fifth time that a Volkswagen product has taken overall honours.
The ID.4 is a compact crossover based on Volkswagen’s MEB platform that was developed exclusively for battery powered vehicles. It follows in the footsteps of the ID.3 hatchback, however unlike the latter the ID.4 is coming to South Africa.
The crossover is powered by a 150 kW electric motor that’s fed by a 77 kWh battery that allows a claimed range of up to 520 km on the WLTP cycle.
To claim the top spot the ID.4 had to beat 24 other finalists from around the world. Joining it on the top three podium was the Toyota Yaris and Honda e.
World Car Awards also announced the winners of the competition’s four categories.
2021 World Urban Car: Honda e
The Honda e rose to the top of an initial entry list of seven cars, with the new Toyota Yaris and Honda’s own Jazz joining it in the top three. The retro-looking compact hatchback is built on a new rear-wheel drive platform that Honda developed specifically for electric cars.
2021 World Luxury Car: Mercedes-Benz S-Class
The new Mercedes S-Class beat the Land Rover Defender and Polestar 2 to take honours as the world’s best luxury car. The category initially had 10 finalists. The large Mercedes impressed with its trailblazing innovations in all areas, from safety to comfort and efficiency.
2021 World Performance Car: Porsche 911 Turbo
In this diverse category, the Porsche 911 Turbo beat the Audi RS Q8 and Toyota Yaris GR, which had joined it in the top three. Porsche’s 911 Turbo has impressed journalists around the world with its combination of brutal performance and everyday useability.
2021 World Car Design: Land Rover Defender
This award includes all contenders from all categories and champions innovative new vehicles that push the established boundaries. This design victory is certainly an endorsement of the gamble that Land Rover took when reincarnating its legendary 4×4.
