Pontiac, MI - /PRNewswire/ -- The North American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Year™ (NACTOY) Awards organization announced its list of semifinalists today at the inaugural Motor Bella event at M1 Concourse in Pontiac.
This year, 23 new vehicles made the list of semifinalists for the 2022 awards following a vote of the organization's jurors. The list includes eight cars, six trucks and nine utility vehicles that are all new or substantially new and are or will be on sale in showrooms across North America this year. The semifinalists were voted in from an initial list of 36 eligible cars, trucks and utility vehicles announced earlier this year.
"This year's group of semifinalists includes some of the most interesting and innovative cars, trucks and utility vehicle candidates in recent memory," said NACTOY President Gary Witzenburg, "and a larger number of new trucks than we've seen in many years. And it features more electric vehicles than we've ever seen, all of which our jurors will continue to test and evaluate prior to our next vote."
NACTOY's awards are unique because they are not decided by a single publication. Instead, they are evaluated throughout the year by 50 respected jurors from print, online, radio and broadcast media across the U.S. and Canada. Those jurors vote three times during the year to reduce the list of eligible vehicles down to semifinalists, finalists and, finally, winners.
"I would also like to thank Rod Alberts, executive director of the Detroit Auto Dealers Association, for the opportunity to announce our semifinalists here today at Motor Bella," Witzenburg said. "We traditionally announce our winners at the Detroit auto show in January, and it is thrilling to kick off our core evaluation period here today at this all-new event."
The next step in the process is an annual comparison drive that will take place Oct. 18-21, where jurors will evaluate the semifinalist vehicles before voting to select the three finalists in each group. The finalists will be announced at the LA Auto Show on November 17, and winners will be announced in January 2022 during an event hosted by the Detroit Auto Dealers Association in Detroit.
Here is the full list of our 2022 Semifinalists:
North American Car of the Year™
Audi A3
Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing
Genesis G70
Honda Civic
Lucid Air
Mercedes-Benz EQS
Mercedes-Benz S-Class
Volkswagen Golf Mk VIII (Golf R/Golf GTI)
North American Truck of the Year™
Ford Maverick
GMC HUMMER EV
Hyundai Santa Cruz
Nissan Frontier
Rivian R1T
Toyota Tundra
North American Utility Vehicle of the Year™
Ford Bronco
Genesis GV70
Hyundai IONIQ 5
Hyundai Tucson (HEV/ICE/PHEV)
Jeep Grand Cherokee (ICE, PHEV, L)
Jeep Wagoneer/Grand Wagoneer
Kia Carnival
Nissan Pathfinder
VW ID.4
Spanish and French versions of this release will be available on NACTOY's website. For more information about NACTOY and its history: http://northamericancaroftheyear.org.
ABOUT NORTH AMERICAN CAR, TRUCK, AND UTILITY VEHICLE OF THE YEAR™
The awards are intended to recognize the most outstanding new vehicles of the year. These vehicles are benchmarks in their segments based on factors including innovation, design, safety, handling, driver satisfaction and value for the dollar. The organization gives out three awards. They are: "North American Car of the Year™," "North American Truck of the Year™," and "North American Utility Vehicle of the Year™." The awards are unique because they are given by an independent jury of automotive journalists from the United States and Canada instead of by a single publication, website, radio or television station.