The votes are in for the best cars in SA, as voted for exclusively by women.
The 2016 Women on Wheels (WOW) Car of the Year Award goes to the Hyundai Tucson and the Range Rover Sport takes the overall Reader’s Choice Award.
Thousands of votes were cast and the winning cars in 11 categories were chosen out of 120 finalists (over and above the overall winners).
Cars were also voted for by the all women judging panel which included WOW editor Juliet McGuire and 9 other top motoring journalists namely: Melinda Ferguson, Janine-Lee van der Post, Mabuyane Kekana, Lindsay Vine-Smyth, Ané Theron, Jeanette Kritzinger, Carrie-Anne Jane, Liana Reiners, and Vuyi Jabavu.
“Judges voted based on things such as good value for money, practicality, comfort, and performance,” says Juliet McGuire, the driving force behind the awards.
The ten judges voted for cars in each category via a point system and the car with the highest number of votes was then crowned the winner of that category. Judges were then asked to vote for their overall car of the year. The Hyundai Tucson took this top honour due to its affordability, practicality and overall value for money.
WOW readers were able to vote for their favourite cars online (2808 entries were received with 2383 Unique Entries) and their votes were counted to determine the winner in each category. The 11 winners each received a Reader’s Choice award and the Range Rover Sport was chosen from the list of category winners as the Reader’s Choice 2016 WOW Car of the Year.
“The reason these awards are so important is because they are the only awards that are catered to women and voted by women,” says McGuire. “These judges are at the top of their game within the motoring journalism industry. It’s also interesting to see what the public would consider the best of the best.”
She continues: “This was the first year whereby a point system was used in the voting process and I could not be happier with the results. It is a true reflection of what the leading female motoring journalists in this country deem to be the best of the best. The Reader’s Choice section of the awards is also a first for the WOW awards. Usually we include it in the total votes, but I felt we should keep them separate as to see exactly what our readers are thinking when it comes to the best cars on the market.”
All The Winners:
JUDGES VOTES:
Budget buys: Kia Picanto
Hatchbacks: Audi A3
Family Sedans: Audi A4
Luxury Sedans: BMW 7 Series
MPVs: Kia Sedona
Green Cars: Volvo XC90 T8
Compact Crossover/SUVs: Hyundai Tucson
Large Crossover/SUV: Volvo XC90
Convertibles: Mazda MX-5
Lifestyle Bakkies: Ford Ranger
Sports Cars: Ford Mustang
OVERALL CAR OF THE YEAR: HYUNDAI TUCSON
READERS CHOICE AWARDS:
Budget buys: Volkswagen Polo
Hatchbacks: Mercedes-Benz A-Class
Family Sedans: Audi A4
Luxury Sedans: Mercedes-Benz S-Class
MPVs: Mercedes-Benz V-Class
Green Cars: BMW i8
Compact Crossover/SUVs: Mercedes-Benz GLC
Large Crossover/SUV: Range Rover Sport
Convertibles: Ferrari 488 Spider
Lifestyle Bakkies: Toyota Hilux
Sports Cars: Ford Mustang
OVERALL CAR OF THE YEAR: Range Rover Sport
– ANA
