Porsche Panamera wins 2018 WesBank Car of the year
The winner of the 2018 WesBank South African Car of the year has been announced after a comprehensive scoring process undertaken by a panel of 24 jury members, appointed by the SA Guild of Motoring Journalists.
The final award sees victory claimed by the Porsche Panamera, followed by the Volvo S90 in second place. The Alfa Romeo Giulia took third place in the competition.
IOL reports that jury members spent two days in late January assessing the 10 finalists in a variety of conditions. Each vehicle finalist was then scored according to 12 categories, namely, exterior design, interior materials, layout, technology, engine, gearbox, engineering, ride, steering/handling, affordability, value and overall excellence.
“The contest has faced public criticism in recent years after a spate of Porsche victories (2013: Porsche Boxster, 2014: Porsche Cayman S, 2015: Porsche Macan). Last year’s victor, the Opel Astra, was the first lower-end car to have won since the Hyundai Elantra of 2012,” says IOL.
“However there is also a misconception that lower and higher-end cars are directly compared in the competition. In reality, jurors are instructed to compare each finalist with its natural rivals within its price context, thus a Kia Picanto should not be directly compared to a Porsche Panamera.
Still, the frequency of Porsche victories is causing many to question the relevance of the competition, particularly within the context of the South African market and the country’s socio-economic realities. The opposing argument is that the contest seeks to honour excellence and technological advancement in the auto industry.”
Car of the year finalists were as follows:
Alfa Romeo Giulia
Audi Q5
BMW 5 Series
Kia Picanto
Land Rover Discovery
Peugeot 3008
Porsche Panamera
Suzuki Ignis
Toyota C-HR
Volvo S90
Source: IOL Motoring