BSM[Business Standard Motoring ] Jury Award 2007

Jury Award 2007 Honda Civic

The Jury Award is given to a significant car launched during the calendar year. The Honda Civic is the car that we all loved universally. It should have been our Car Of The Year, and deservedly so. Honda Siel have given us a saloon that is as contemporary as it gets and have not scrimped on the safety features and performance either. The Civic is a car that's extremely modern and avant garde, its design is futuristic, while its interior layout and features have never been seen before in a production car in India. The engine, like in all Hondas, is a gem – it can thrill both enthusiasts and economy-minded folks alike. And the paddle-shift option for shifting gears in the automatic version is also a never-seen-before in its category. It rides and handles well, making both the driver and the rear seat passenger happy. Plus the Civic for India has a comprehensive safety specifications list and is pretty loaded with other mod-cons too.

So why isn't it our Car Of The Year? Simple, for India, the Civic is an expensive car. The Business Standard Motoring point rating system gives extra weightage to cars that are affordable and cheap to run. While the Civic scored high points across the board, it lost out simply on its price tag. Which does not mean it's not value for money – in its segment, it is the car to buy. But the BSM rating system has been created with the larger mass of Indian car buyers in mind. As time goes by our benchmark for price will be raised and fine automobiles such as the Civic will certainly get the benefit. That time has not yet come. Which is why our favourite car of this year's COTY bunch, the Honda Civic, wins the Business Standard Motoring Jury Award 2007.

[Source: www.bsmotoring.com ]

 

[manjotdullat]

Import Car Of The Year 2007

Toyota Camry

The contenders for our Import Car Of The Year 2007 Award included mighty machines like the Audi Q7, the Honda CR-V, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class and the Toyota Camry. The Audi and Merc operate at a stratospheric price level, and that put them out of the reckoning this year. Again, the new CR-V from Honda, though a better car than its predecessor in every aspect, has a steep price tag. And that landed the Camry with the top spot this year in this category.

But that isn't the only reason why we have called the Camry the winner. Across the world, the Camry has kept the Toyota flag flying high for years on end. It has been the benchmark large saloon and somehow Toyota has consistently been raising the bar with every successive generation of the car. The latest iteration which has been offered by Toyota in India, is a substantial upgrade from the previous one. It actually makes a design statement, which is a step forward for the conservative Japanese giant. Though they haven't offered a V6, the four-cylinder motor is not a compromise at all. It is a phenomenal engine that is extremely driveable, enjoyable and economical. Okay, it's not a cheap car, but for your money, you get an accomplished saloon that makes you feel good that you have made a wise and sensible investment. Which is why the Toyota Camry is the Business Standard Motoring Import Car Of The Year 2007.


[Source: www.bsmotoring.com ]

 

[manjotdullat]

Car Of The Year 2007

Business Standard Motoring Car Of The Year 2007 – Chevrolet Aveo U-VA

Squeezing in at the nick of time, steadily building up points all the way to the front and emerging a surprise winner – beating the likes of the virtually invincible Honda Civic, the almost-everything-going-for-it Maruti Suzuki Zen Estilo and the well-balanced Hyundai Verna twins. With this kind of competition, the U-VA was almost the underdog. It had nothing extraordinary going for it. For example, it is not as future-proof as the Civic, it does not have the Maruti-Suzuki Midas touch like the Zen Estilo and it didn't have the engine performance that the Verna promised. Yet it beat competitors as formidable as these.

The secret is that the U-VA did consistently well in all the parameters without emerging too strong in any single one. The performance may not be exceptional, especially when looked at it in sterile 0 to 60 kph or 0 to 100 kph terms, yet its little 1150cc motor surprised the jury with its spunky, cheerful attitude. And the best part is that it's an efficient engine that's miserly with the unleaded. In our list of subjective parameters that includes elements like drivetrain, driveability, ride, handling and build quality, the U-VA gained decent scores, which contributed to its winning total. General Motors India has equipped the U-VA with quite a comprehensive safety package as well as other comfort features, which notched up a significant chunk of points for the Chevy. And finally, the persuasive price tag, arrived at by GMI to make it competitive in the market place and also helped along by the excise duty cut for small cars, sealed the deal for the Chevy.

A small car on the outside, comforts of a big car on the inside, reasonable performance, sorted-out dynamics, comprehensively equipped with features, and more importantly, wearing a value-for-money price tag is about as ideal as it gets. That's what the little Chevy manages. And that's not all. The U-VA is an accomplished, grown-up hatchback that doesn't make its buyer feel that he has made a compromise – it's that feel-good factor, the magical element that makes the Chevrolet Aveo U-VA theBusiness Standard Motoring Car Of The Year 2007. Well done, General Motors India!

Previous Winners

2006
Maruti Suzuki Swift
2005
Hyundai Getz
2004
Honda City
2003
Mahindra Scorpio
2002
Fiat Palio
[Source: www.bsmotoring.com ]