HOT TOPIC
// AA DRIVEN NZ CAR OF THE YEAR: Safety award
(Subaru Outback SUV) The Safety award is carefully calculated by the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) using a specific formula to give a list of the highest (weighted) scores for vehicles in the NZ market today.
// AA DRIVEN NZ CAR OF THE YEAR: Best Sports/Performance car
(Toyota GR Yaris) No surprises here: how could our 2021 AA DRIVEN NZ COTY overall winner not also top the class in which it competes?
// AA DRIVEN NZ CAR OF THE YEAR: Best Luxury car
(Hyundai Ioniq 5) Hyundai and luxury may not immediately spring to mind, but the Ioniq 5 Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) reinforces the association,
// AA DRIVEN NZ CAR OF THE YEAR: Best Clean & Green BEV
(Peugeot e-208 GT) It’s a potentially bold move for a buyer to move from an internal combustion engine car to a Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV).
// AA DRIVEN NZ CAR OF THE YEAR: Best Clean & Green PHEV
(Ford Escape PHEV) The Plug-in Hybrid Vehicle (PHEV) potentially offers the best of both worlds: the ability to complete the daily commute on zero-emissions battery power, yet still operate as a petrol-electric hybrid for longer journeys.
// AA DRIVEN NZ CAR OF THE YEAR: Best Clean & Green Hybrid
(Toyota RAV4 Hybrid) And it’s a warm welcome back to the Toyota RAV4! After claiming the class award for Medium SUV, the petrol-electric version was also an easy choice for our judges in the Hybrid category.
// AA DRIVEN NZ CAR OF THE YEAR: Best Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV)
(The Toyota Hilux) is an icon in NZ that’s been evolving for decades, but the latest version has really hit the sweet spot in a competitive market.
// AA DRIVEN NZ CAR OF THE YEAR: Best Passenger car
(Tesla Model 3 ) The Passenger category is deliberately diverse, encompassing hatchbacks, sedans and station wagons – anything that’s not been subsumed into the world of SUVs, basically.
// AA DRIVEN NZ CAR OF THE YEAR: Best Large SUV
(The Kia Sorento) surprised us several times this year. First, the turbo-diesel range came along and put a stake in the ground with striking styling, superb quality, and pricing substantially undercutting the sister
// AA DRIVEN NZ CAR OF THE YEAR: Best Medium SUV
(The Toyota RAV4) was a star of our last COTY programme back in 2019. It’s good enough to have been voted top Medium SUV again for 2021, which is all the more incredible when you consider what a crowded and competitive market segment this is.
// AA DRIVEN NZ CAR OF THE YEAR: Best Small SUV
(Yaris Cross) Toyota’s Yaris hatchback was one of the highlights of last year for the DRIVEN team, so it stands to reason that the Yaris Cross would be the top Small SUV for 2021.
// AA DRIVEN NZ CAR OF THE YEAR: People’s Choice winner revealed
(Tesla Model 3) The AA DRIVEN New Zealand Car of the Year class categories and overall winners for 2021 were decided by a panel comprising Dean Evans, David Linklater, Andrew Sluys (all from DRIVEN), Ian Green, and Cade Wilson (both from the AA).