2019/20 Cars.co.za Consumer Awards finalists announced

The judges, who included the full Cars.co.za editorial team and a host of celebrity judges, tested 39 vehicles across 13 different categories.

Their scores will now be tabulated by auditors PwC and combined in equal measure with the feedback of thousands of vehicle owners from the Cars.co.za Ownership Satisfaction Survey to decide each category winner. The customer feedback has been compiled in partnership with vehicle information specialists, Lightstone Auto.

The Cars.co.za Consumer Awards, powered by WesBank, made waves five years ago when they were launched as a comprehensive and statistically significant evaluation of the thousands of models available on the South African market.

Judging process

Unlike other automotive competitions, the Cars.co.za Consumer Awards, powered by WesBank, considers all vehicles that are on sale on a given date (1 September 2019, in this case). From this pool, the judges pick semi-finalists and finalists using a very rigorous set of criteria, including the feedback from owners and market insight from Cars.co.za's deep knowledge of the automotive market.

The finalists were then pitted against each other over two days at Gerotek, with specific judges assigned to each category. Their inputs are weighted, based on the category, and combined with the customer data from the Ownership Satisfaction Survey to truly find the best vehicle in each category.

This process means that poor service support or sub-par vehicle durability will show up in the Ownership Satisfaction Survey and act as a counterbalance to excellent on-track performance at Gerotek. Similarly, a vehicle may prove to offer exceptional service and durability, but not represent automotive excellence, causing it to fall short at the Gerotek testing. Both emotion and reason have to be present for a vehicle to win its category.

Understanding the market

“In the past five years, we conducted over 1,800 test drives and considered hundreds of thousands of customer inputs. This, along with the insights from our partner, WesBank, has allowed us to perfect our judging process and build an unmatched database of vehicle data,” says Hannes Oosthuizen, Cars.co.za Consumer Experience Manager.

As part of its process of refinement, Cars.co.za has introduced a new Crossover segment, removed the Executive Sedan category due to its low sales and a lack of new models and redefined the Hot Hatch category to a Fun Hatch category.

“Through our partnership with the Cars.co.za Consumer Awards, we have further broadened our understanding of the vehicle market and made it available to customers and manufacturers alike. This helps would-be buyers take the stress out of buying a vehicle, meaning they can make an informed choice, apply with our FastFinance app and drive away in their dream car in minutes,” says Lebogang Gaoaketse, Communications, Social & PR Manager at WesBank.

Aside from celebrating the fifth year running of the Cars.co.za Consumer Awards – powered by WesBank, Cars.co.za also popped the champagne on its tenth anniversary and its status as South Africa’s largest vehicle portal.

The finalists

Budget Car

• Kia Picanto 1.2 Style
• Suzuki Swift 1.2 GLX
• Volkswagen Polo Vivo Trendline

Compact Hatch

• Ford Fiesta 1.0 Trend Auto
• Mazda2 1.5 Individual Auto
• Volkswagen Polo 1.0 TSI Comfortline Auto

Premium Hatch

• Mazda3 2.0 Astina
• Mercedes-Benz A200 AMG-Line
• Volkswagen Golf GTI

Executive SUV

• BMW X3 xDrive20d M-Sport
• Range Rover Evoque D180 R-Dynamic SE
• Volvo XC60 D5 R-Design

Compact Family Car

• Renault Duster 1.5 dCi Prestige
• Suzuki Vitara 1.4T GLX Auto
• Volkswagen T-Cross 1.0 TSI 85kW Highline R-Line

Family Car

• Mazda CX-5 2.0 Dynamic Auto
• Peugeot 3008 2.0 HDI Allure
• Toyota RAV4 2.0 GX Auto

Adventure SUV

• Ford Everest 2.0 Bi-Turbo 4WD Limited
• Haval H9 Luxury
• Toyota Fortuner 2.8GD-6 4x4 Auto

Premium SUV

• Audi Q8 55 TFSI Quattro
• BMW X5 xDrive30d M-Sport
• Range Rover Velar D300 R-Dynamic HSE

Crossover

• Audi Q3 35 TFSI S Line
• Jaguar E-Pace D180 AWD R-Dynamic
• Volvo XC40 D4 R-Design

Leisure Double Cab

• Ford Ranger 2.0 BiTDi Wildtrak 4x4 Auto
• Toyota Hilux 2.8 GD-6 Legend 50 4x4 Auto
• Volkswagen Amarok 3.0 V6 TDI Highline 4Motion

Business Class

• BMW 320d Sport Line
• Mercedes-Benz C300 AMG Line
• Volkswagen Arteon 2.0 TSI 4Motion R-Line

Fun Hatch

• Mini Cooper S Sports-Auto
• Suzuki Swift Sport 1.4T
• Volkswagen Polo GTI

Performance Car

• BMW M2 Competition M-DCT
• Ford Mustang GT 5.0
• Toyota Supra 3.0T