2009 COTY and TOTY Contenders Announced

[NOS2006]

http://www.leftlanenews.com/north-american...-announced.html

I'm going to go out on a limb and say:

COTY: CTS-V

TOTY: X6 (I think it'll win for being different even though I'd like to see Vue Hybrid take this)

[Hudson]

Normally there's one or two in each category that bubble right to the top for me. There are NONE in either group.

My favorites:

COTY: Ford Flex (although I'm leaning more toward the Hyundai Genesis)

TOTY: Mercedes-Benz ML Bluetc (but I might be convinced of the merits of the Saturn Vue)

[pow]

I'm going to say Honda Fit and Dodge Ram..

Has anyone even driven the '09 VUE 2-mode?

[CSpec]

I bet it would have been the GR-R if these weren't lean times. I'm going to guess XF and X6.

[gm4life]

I am going to say MKS and Traverse.

[Bimmer325]

I am going to say MKS and Traverse.

I don't really see any reason the Traverse would win TOTY. It's essentially the same as the other three Lambdas, offers nothing new and in no way revolutionizes the industry.

[gm4life]

I know but it will be the volume Lambdas and has alot of significance for Chevrolet.

[siegen]

Refresh my memory, what are these awards based on again? Is it just which car the 50 journalists like more than the others?

[Northstar]

Refresh my memory, what are these awards based on again? Is it just which car the 50 journalists like more than the others?

That, and the significance of the car/truck, for example if it breaks new ground in a segment or if a certain company makes a product that's a lot more competitive and shows a big step forward in that segment for the company (part of the reason the Malibu won, I am guessing).

I would probably say A4, Mazda6, and XF are the top 3 for cars, and perhaps the VUE, Bluetec, and Tiguan for trucks. I can't see the X6 winning TOTY.

[siegen]

My guesses:

Car:

1st: Genesis

2nd: CTS-V

3rd: Fit

Truck:

1st: RAM

2nd: Forester

3rd: X6

[regfootball]

car- Fit, Mazda6, Flex, in that order. (mainly because the Fit is good mpg)

truck- Ram or Vue hybrid (ram because of new rear suspenders), or F-150 if Ford is bribing the right people.

Contenders for 2009 Car of the Year include:

Audi A4 - nice but not any better than its competition

BMW 1-Series -small heavy and pricey

Cadillac CTS-V too much hp great car but seriously its not green

Dodge Challenger cheap interior and exterior wasnt quite good enough plus its not green

Ford Flex - could win points for being a 'game changer' and signifies ford improving its product

Honda Fit - they toned it down and kept the mpg and utility...i bet it wins

Hyundai Genesis - not enough style to win

Jaguar XF - too lavish, although if it did win i wouldnt be surprised

Lincoln MKS - kudos but not enough WOW

Mazda Mazda6 - the latest state of the art in practical midsize, which is why i think it wins

Nissan GT-R - no one wants this to win. its a cartoon car.

Pontiac G8 - last year, maybe, this year no.

Toyota Venza - yuck.

Volkswagen Jetta TDI - nice idea but even with diesel its not like a VW diesel is a new thing

And the contenders for the 2009 Truck of the Year include:

BMW X6 -fat and ugly

Chevrolet Traverse - could surprise but we already have the outlook and acadia

Dodge Ram - the new rear suspension will win this category

Ford F-150 - they didn't outdo dodge

Honda Pilot - too bad its a freakshow.

Infiniti FX 35/50 - gluttonous

Kia Borrego - dull and too big

Mercedes-Benz ML320 BlueTec again its only a diesel not like we havent seen that before

Nissan Murano - popular vehicle but not that different than before

Saturn Vue Hybrid - dual mode is the distinction that might win it, good vehicle otherwise

Subaru Forester - nice ride but its just another asian cute ute brings nothing new to the table

Volkswagen Tiguan - no cargo space, why its on here i dont know

Edited September 22, 2008 by regfootball

[Lamar]

My top 5:

COTY - MKS, XF, Genesis, A4, CTS-V

TOTY - Flex, Ram, F-150, Escalade Hybrid, Journey

[daves87rs]

My guesses:

Car:

1st: Genesis

2nd: CTS-V

3rd: Fit

Truck:

1st: RAM

2nd: Forester

3rd: X6

Agree with the top picks...

And they will win because the Genesis is the real deal-and the Ram has to save the company......

[Chicagoland]

This is the North American COTY/TOTY.

Not to be confused with Motor Trend's 'COTY/TOTY', Car and Driver's '10 Best', and Automobile's whatever they call it.

[thedriver]

The Flex and Venza are on the wrong list....

[thegriffon]

The Venza is just a station wagon, not a real crossover.

[thegriffon]

In size and form it's closest to the Fiat Croma. It may have optional awd, but so do the Audi A6 Avant, the Opel Insignia etc.

[FUTURE_OF_GM]

Car of the year will be either the Fit (Because these douchebags will want to convey the big green image) or The Mazda 6 (Because, even though it's the same car with uglier sheet metal, everyone seems to be enthralled with it) or the GT-R (Because apparently all of the added weight and electronic nannies that they bitch about on american and european cars are ALL THE RAGE on Japanese cars)

The WILD CARD is the Genesis though... If the media is serious about pushing Hyundai past Detroit on the ladder, then this will be the likely choice. For that and to kill enthusiasm about the Camaro. But the Genesis still seems too half baked to REALLY gain ground with their yuppie readers.

Truck of the year will be either the Forester (Again, the green image, even though Subaru exploited CAFE using the Forester. Apparently no one cares about CAFE unless it's one of the "Detroit 3") or the Honda Pilot (It's a natural, after all. Honda can do no wrong) or The Infiniti alphabet soup (Since everyone seems to think that "melted down looking plastic cars" are cool)

The WILD CARD would be the VW if they're looking to be trendy.

[PONTIAC06]

Random question...What is the distinction between the Traverse that makes it a truck, and the Flex that makes it a car....I thought they competed in the exact same class...

[Sixty8panther]

Hudson:

You'd really pick the Flex over the CTS-V????

The Flex is gross... looks like it was designed by someone

who could only draw 90* angles. It's like a Scion xB that

got elephantiasis.