"13 Cars Compete as Finalists for 'Best Car'"

Auto Journalists Association '2024 Car of the Year' Final First Round Evaluation

The Korea Automobile Journalists Association announced on the 23rd that 13 new cars from 9 brands of domestic and imported vehicles have advanced to the second round of the final evaluation for the 2024 Car of the Year first round evaluation.

The association conducted the first round of the final evaluation from the 16th to the 19th on vehicles released last year (including facelifts) that passed the preliminary evaluations in the first and second halves of the year. The 13 selected vehicles will undergo the final evaluation on the 7th of next month at the Korea Transportation Safety Authority Automobile Safety Research Institute in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province. By brand, Kia, BMW, Toyota, and Hyundai each have two vehicles, while Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, Chevrolet, Genesis, and KG Mobility each have one vehicle.

In the Car of the Year category, 10 vehicles passed the first round of the final evaluation: ▲Kia EV9, new Carnival ▲Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV ▲BMW 5 Series ▲Chevrolet Trax Crossover ▲Genesis GV80 Coupe ▲KG Mobility Torres EVX ▲Toyota 5th generation Prius ▲Hyundai Ioniq 5N, new Santa Fe.

In the Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) category of the year, four vehicles secured their place in the final evaluation: ▲Kia EV9 ▲Chevrolet Trax Crossover ▲Genesis GV80 Coupe ▲Hyundai new Santa Fe. In the Utility category of the year, two vehicles passed the first round of the final evaluation: ▲Kia The New Carnival ▲Toyota Alphard. In the Electric Vehicle (EV) category of the year, two vehicles will compete in the second round of the final evaluation: ▲Kia EV9 ▲Hyundai Ioniq 5N.

In the Design category of the year, eight vehicles made it to the finals: ▲Kia EV9 ▲Land Rover All New Defender 130 ▲BMW 5 Series ▲Chevrolet Trax Crossover ▲Genesis GV80 Coupe ▲Toyota 5th generation Prius ▲Hyundai Ioniq 5N, new Santa Fe. In the Performance category of the year, four vehicles passed the first round of the final evaluation: ▲Kia EV9 ▲BMW i5 ▲Genesis GV80 Coupe ▲Hyundai Ioniq 5N.

The Automobile Journalists Association annually selects and announces the best car in Korea through three rounds of evaluation?first half, second half, and final evaluation?targeting new cars released domestically. The evaluation is divided into eight categories: Car of the Year, Domestic Car of the Year (or Imported Car), SUV of the Year, Utility of the Year, EV of the Year, Design of the Year, Performance of the Year, and Innovation of the Year. The association’s 55 member companies (media outlets) each have one vote to evaluate the vehicles.

Jeong Chi-yeon, Chairperson of the Car of the Year Selection Committee, said, "We conduct the Car of the Year evaluation every year on all new cars released domestically to promote technological advancement through healthy competition among automobile brands and to provide consumers with accurate product information." He added, "We plan to conduct a rigorous final real-vehicle evaluation at the Korea Transportation Safety Authority Automobile Safety Research Institute using facilities such as the high-speed circuit, steering performance track, special durability track, and K-CITY."