17 March 2009 Honda Accord 2.4 Executive is named the 2009 South African Car of the Year by the SA Guild of Motoring Journalists

The South African Guild of Motoring Journalists (SAGMJ) announced the Honda Accord 2.4 Executive as South Africa’s 2009 Car of the Year (COTY) at a gala banquet at Gallagher Convention Centre, Midrand, on Tuesday 17 March. The awards function, hosted by competition sponsor WesBank, was attended by the who’s who of the South African motoring industry.

The announcement of the prestigious accolade comes after a stringent process of voting and physical testing of eligible cars launched onto the SA market between 21 October 2007 and 31 October 2008. An in-depth poll of the SAGMJ full members, followed by a vote by the COTY jury, arrived at nine finalists towards the end of last year. The COTY jury, made up of the top motoring journalists in the country, then put the finalists through three days of testing in January and subjected them to a rigid scoring process.

The final audited scores showed Honda’s mid-sized sedan as the eventual winner of what is widely considered to be the most prestigious accolade in the motor industry. The SAGMJ, a professional body of qualified motoring writers, has annually awarded the title of SA’s Car of the Year for 24 years.

The Honda Accord beat off strong competition from the Ford Fiesta 1.6 Trend 5-dr, Suzuki Swift 1.5 GLS, Mazda6 2.5 Individual, Jaguar XF 3.0 V6 Premium Luxury A/T, VW Tiguan1.4TSI Trend and Fun 4Motion, Audi A4 1.8T Ambition multitronic, Honda Jazz 1.5 EX and Suzuki SX4 2.0 which were the finalists vying for honours in the country’s premier motoring event.

Much of the evaluation process took place at the Gerotek vehicle test facility outside Pretoria, making the South African Car of the Year competition unique amongst similar accolades awarded globally because of the extensive testing which takes place in a controlled environment. The contenders are also evaluated taking their direct market rivals into account and are therefore judged in their segments rather than against each other.

By definition, the SA Car of the Year should evoke automotive passion and excitement to make it a truly outstanding car both in its class and in the whole market. The COTY competition is about automotive excellence and the winning car must score highly in its class across a variety of categories including those which reflect value for money, safety, dynamics, technology and aesthetics. It should also demonstrate that it strives towards representing innovation and ingenuity in marketing and engineering in its class and should represent a brave step forward in motoring, preferably setting new benchmarks in its market segment. The winner must show that is truly worthy of the ultimate accolade and the singular title of ‘The South African Car of the Year’.

The COTY competition is sponsored by WesBank, with support sponsorship from Total South Africa.

Notes to editors:
• The SAGMJ has run the South African Car of the Year competition since 1986
• WesBank has sponsored the competition since inception
• Previous winners:
1986 Toyota Corolla Twin Cam
1987 Mercedes 260
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 VW Polo 1.4 TDi
2004 Renault Megane 1.9 dCi
2005 Volvo S40 2.4i
2006 Audi A3 Sportback 2.0T
2007 Honda Civic 1.8VXi Sedan
2008 Mazda2 1.5 Individual