At a glittering function at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, the Porsche Boxster entered the record books in South Africa this week by becoming the first Porsche model in the history of the competition to win the prestigious WesBank/SAGMJ Car of the Year competition. The 2013 iteration of the competition was also the first year in which a Porsche was included as a finalist. The announcement follows a gala dinner hosted by WesBank, the competition’s headline sponsor, and the SA Guild of Motoring Journalists (SAGMJ), at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg.
The WesBank / SAGMJ Car of the Year competition (COTY) rewards automotive excellence and the winning vehicle must score highly in its own class, not against the other finalist vehicles, as is often thought, across a variety of categories including value for money, safety, dynamics, technology and aesthetics, to name but a few. The Boxster entered the competition as a highly revered vehicle that has redefined its market segment and raised the bar in terms of performance, dynamics, quality, value and desirability, in the process beating the remaining 11 finalist for top honours.
The South African competition is based on the European Car of the Year points-based scoring system but is unique in the world of motoring in that each of the finalists – 12 vehicles in the 2013 competition – is also put through a stringent testing procedure by the COTY Jury at the world-renowned Gerotek Vehicle Testing Facility outside Pretoria before any votes are cast.
The Jury was allowed 50 votes that could be allocated to all 12 finalists, but to no less than seven, and with no more than 10 points allocated to any one vehicle. The Jury members are also required to motivate their votes, with both the points allocated and the motivation thereof open to scrutiny from the moment the winner is announced.
In a bold step, the COTY jury also voted to apply an equaliser to this year’s results after a number of finalist manufacturers failed to adhere to the COTY rule of supplying vehicles in standard specification for evaluation purposes. Several of the supplied vehicles featured unreasonable levels of optional equipment that, in some cases, included technological innovations that improve the vehicle’s ride and handling. The vehicles were evaluated and voted for as delivered, with a mathematical equation applied to the final votes to compensate for any advantage the excessively specified vehicles may have gained.
The SA Guild of Motoring Journalists has run the SA Car of the Year competition since 1986, with WesBank – one of South Africa’s largest vehicle finance institutions – as its headline sponsor since inception. Hollard Insurance and Motul supply support sponsorship. In recent years, the competition has had many historic moments, as in 2012 when Hyundai Automotive SA won the title for the first time in its history and became the first Korean vehicle brand to win the title. In 2011, the competition caused an even bigger stir when, for the first time in history, the BMW 530d and Volkswagen Polo 1.6 TDI shared the crown.
Final Result of the 2013 WesBank / SAGMJ Car of the Year Competition: (Effective scores shown)
Porsche Boxster – 221 votes
Range Rover Evoque Si4 Dynamic 5-door – 181 votes
Toyota 86 High Spec 6MT – 177 votes
Kia Rio 1.4 TEC Hatch Manual – 144 votes
Lexus GS 350 EX – 143 votes
Hyundai i30 1.8 Executive – 106 votes
BMW 320i Automatic – 104 votes
Nissan Juke 1.6 DIG-T Tekna (with Leather) – 79 votes
Opel Meriva 1.4T Cosmo – 67 votes
Ford Ranger 3.2 XLT 4X4 Double-cab Auto – 56 votes
Toyota Yaris 1.5 HSD Xs – 47 votes
Mercedes-Benz B180 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY 7G-DCT – 35 votes
Previous winners of the WesBank / SAGMJ 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).
1986 Toyota Corolla Twin Cam
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 TDI
2012 Hyundai Elantra 1.8 GLS Executive
