BMW News

The World Car of the Year Awards (WCOTY) are presented each year at the New York Auto Show in April. A panel of 45 international automotive journalists considers cars that were sold in at least five countries on two continents prior to January 1st of the award year; in this case, before January 1, 2015.

World Car of the Year awards are given in four categories, plus an overall award. In 2014, the BMW i3 electric car won the award for World Green Car and World Car Design.

For 2015, BMWs have been nominated in all categories plus overall. Three finalists in each category will be named at the Geneva Motor Show in Geneva, Switzerland in March 2015. The ultimate winners will be revealed at the New York Auto Show in April.

Here are the cars selected for consideration (in alphabetical order). Remember, three finalists from each category will be named in March, from which the category winners will be picked in April. You may note that only one car company has a nomination in every category:

2015 World Car of the Year (Overall)

BMW 2-Series Active Tourer
Citroën C4 Cactus
Ford Mustang
Hyundai Genesis
Jeep Renegade
Mazda 2
Mercedes-Benz C-Class
MINI Hardtop 4 Door
Nissan Qashqai
Volkswagen Passat (European-spec)

2015 World Luxury Car

BMW i8
BMW X6
Cadillac ATS Coupe
Cadillac Escalade
Kia K900
Lexus NX
Lexus RC
Lincoln MKC
Mercedes-Benz S-Class Coupe
Land Rover Range Rover Autobiography Black Long-Wheelbase

2015 World Performance Car

Audi S1
Audi S3
Audi TT
Bentley Continental GT Speed
BMW M3/M4
Chevrolet Corvette Z06
Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat
Jaguar F-Type R Coupe
Lexus RC F
Mercedes-AMG GT

2015 World Green Car

BMW i8
Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell
Kia Soul EV
Volvo XC90 T8
Volkswagen Golf GTE

2015 World Car Design

BMW 2-Series Active Tourer
Citroën C4 Cactus
Mercedes-Benz C-Class
Porsche Macan
Volvo XC90

To recap, the BMW vehicles that have been nominated for World Car of the Year awards include one coupe, one sedan, one multipurpose vehicle, one plug-in hybrid sports car, and one sports activity coupe or crossover, however you want to classify it. Whether you love or hate BMW’s model proliferation and different types of vehicle in their current lineup, it’s obvious the rest of the world is fairly impressed with the products.—Scott Blazey

[Photos courtesy of BMW AG.]