IT WAS a big shock for motoring community when the Porsche Panamera was named 2018’s Car of the Year.
The luxury four-door coupé has a price tag of about R1,4 million – you can buy 10 entry-level Kia Picanto with that money!
The other finalists in the Wesbank-sponsored competition, organised by the South African Guild of Motoring Journalists, were the Alfa Romeo Giulia, Audi Q5, BMW 5 Series, Kia Picanto, Land Rover Discovery, Peugeot 3008, Suzuki Ignis and Toyota C-HR.
The participating finalists were put through a series of serious tests during a stringent two-day programme held in Gauteng earlier this year.
SunWheels would have preferred the Ignis or Picanto to be the winner. These cars best represent the needs of the average South African consumer. Both the Ignis and Picanto hatches offer value for money, decent comfort features and comprehensive safety kits.
Five interesting facts about the Car of the Year competition
- BMW has won the SA Car Of The Year title a record six times – 1988, 1990, 1993, 1997, 2001 and 2011.
- Audi and Volkswagen have both won the SA Car Of The Year title three times. Honda, Renault, Toyota and Volvo each took the crown twice.
- Alfa Romeo, Ford, Hyundai, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, and Nissan have won once each.
- Opel has won the SA Car Of The Year title for two consecutive years, and has ultimately won the competition four times.
- Porsche is the only manufacturer to win the title for three consecutive years, and has won the competition four times.
Previous winners of the competition
, 1986 Toyota Corolla
, 1987 Mercedes-Benz 260E
, 1988 BMW 735i
, 1989 Toyota Corolla GLi Executive
, 1990 BMW 525i
, 1991 Opel Monza 160 GSi
, 1992 Nissan Maxima 300 SE
, 1993 BMW 316i
, 1994 Opel Kadett 140
, 1995 Opel Astra 160iS
, 1996 Audi A4 1.8
, 1997 BMW 528i
, 1998 Ford Fiesta Fun
, 1999 Alfa Romeo 156 T-Spark
, 2000 Renault Clio 1.4 RT
, 2001 BMW 320d
, 2002 Audi A4 1.9 TDI
, 2003 Volkswagen Polo TDI
, 2004 Renault Mégane 1.9 dCi
, 2005 Volvo S40 2.4i
, 2006 Audi A3 Sportback 2.0T
, 2007 Honda Civic 1.8 VXi Sedan
, 2008 Mazda2 1.5 Individual
, 2009 Honda Accord 2.4 Executive
, 2010 Volkswagen Golf 6 1.4 TSI
, 2011 BMW 530d and Volkswagen Polo 1.6
, 2012 Hyundai Elantra 1.8 GLS
, 2013 Porsche Boxster
, 2014 Porsche Cayman S
, 2015 Porsche Macan Diesel S
, 2016 Volvo XC90
, 2017 Opel Astra
, 2018 Porsche Panamera