Car of the Year Philippines, 2010

[niky]

AFAI remember, Subaru got the last two grand awards for 2008 and 2009.

Now I wonder if it's Subaru again.

Legacy GT as COYP 2009 when I rarely see it even on progressive cities' streets?

Anyway, I'm guessing it'll be the Tucson this time for the People's Choice.

Like I said, it's not a popularity vote like FHM's 100 ***iest. It's a straight-up contest where a panel of judges scores the cars based on set criteria.

Doesn't matter if the winner is not a popular car... the winner is a car that presents the best blend of performance, comfort and value-for-money. That's why Subarus and Volvos often get wins... because they give you a premium experience for mainstream money. ;)

That's the good thing about PCOTY... it lets people know there are excellent cars out there that they wouldn't normally think of.

I think the winner would be the Kia Sorento Kidding!

May laban talaga yung Lancer Ralli Art. Pero hindi ko makita yung Lancer sa pic.

Pwede rin Ford Fiesta S hatch or Mitsubishi ASX. Hindi natin masasabi..

That pic is only from the second day of track testing. The Ralliart is in the running in the Sportscar/Sports Sedan category. Honestly, I was surprised by the car. There's lots to like about it, even in comparison to the 300+ hp competition it faces. In fact, the big equalizer for the Ralliart is the incredible dual clutch system, which gives it performance above and beyond its stated power levels. Only question is: is the rest of the package that much better than a Lancer EX GTA?

All the contestants in the sports category this year are turbocharged AWD four-door sedans (except for the Impreza WRX STi hatch). We've got the Subaru S60 T6, the Lancer Ralliart, the STI hatch (automatic) and the STI sedan. A pretty good set of cars... and surprisingly, performance numbers are all very close in this group.

All encompassing format - as what they did in the previous years IMHO

Yup. There is one overall winner, but the class winners are equally important.

Can I place my bet?

And if I win, do I keep the car?

What color do you want?

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I'd hate to pick a winner this year. So many new and deserving cars... the ASX, the Ralliart, the Tucson, the Fiesta and Mazda2, the Sorento... heck... it might even be a Volvo or Subaru again, for all we know...