South Africans came out in force to vote for their favourite cars in the third annual Standard Bank People’s Wheels Awards.
From June 10 to August 25, a total of 101 438 votes were cast across the competition’s 30 categories – the highest number received since the project’s inception in 2011 and emphatic reinforcement of its growing acceptance as one of the most significant surveys on the country’s automotive calendar.
Additionally, a record number of responses where received from vehicle owners in a survey designed to determine their satisfaction levels with regard to the cars and bakkies they drive every day.
Initiated by the Future Group in association with Standard Bank, research house TNS South Africa and media partner the Sunday Times, the People’s Wheels Awards bring to the automotive sector a pioneering means of rewarding vehicle excellence while simultaneously offering relevant and useful information to the consumer market regarding ownership perceptions of vehicle brands – including reliability, durability and loyalty factors.
Sydney Soundy, Head of Vehicle and Asset Finance at Standard Bank, says: “Everybody has an opinion about the vehicle they own or would like to own and will defend their choices as vigorously as they do their favourite sports teams.”
He adds that Standard Bank, as one of the leading financiers of car buyers in South Africa, is well aware of the emotions that cars provoke. “These emotions – and the special place that many people have in their lives for their cars – are one of the primary motivators for our sponsorship of the People’s Wheels Awards.”
Soundy says in Standard Bank’s view, all motorists should have a voice in deciding which is South Africa’s most esteemed car. “There is nobody better at assessing the merits of vehicles than the people who drive them – or know people who drive them – and aspire to own some of these vehicles.”
He says these drivers can be found studying motoring magazines, supplements and TV shows and devouring all the information they can find on their dream rides. “In short, South Africans know their cars. The People’s Wheels Awards provides the opportunity for them to exercise their knowledge.
“Ordinary drivers can have their voices heard. The People’s Wheels Awards is the ultimate leveler in the car awards stakes. The results reflect feelings on the ground and allow all brands, regardless of inclusivity or exclusivity, to participate on an equal basis for various classes of accolades. Acceptance of a vehicle’s merits and the ‘wow’ factor it arouses within the people, rather than the size of marketing budgets, is what counts,” he says.
So, who voted for what in the 2014 poll? While full results will be revealed on Thursday, November 21 at the Standard Bank People’s Wheels Awards Breakfast at the Montecasino Ballroom, Sandton, to whet your appetite here’s a list of the vehicles that voters selected as their top six nominees in each of the 30 categories.
Presented category by category in alphabetical order, they range from budget buys to family sedans, from premium class road warriors to exotic supercars, from SUVs, MPVs and crossovers to delivery vans and bakkies. The nominees are:
CATEGORY 1: BUDGET BUYS – AFFORDABILITY FIRST
Chevrolet Spark Lite
Citroën C1
Fiat Panda
Hyundai i10
Kia Picanto
Suzuki Alto
CATEGORY 2: URBAN COMMUTERS – COST-CONSCIOUS RUNABOUTS
Chevrolet Spark
Ford Figo
Honda Brio
Toyota Aygo
Toyota Etios
Volkswagen Polo Vivo
CATEGORY 3: MOVERS & SHAKERS – COMPACT HATCHES/SEDANS
Ford Fiesta
Hyundai i20
Kia Rio
Renault Clio
Toyota Yaris
Volkswagen Polo
CATEGORY 4: THE MOD SQUAD – CONTEMPORARY HATCHES/SEDANS
Audi A1/A1 Sportback
Citroën DS3
Kia Cerato
Mazda 3
Mini Cooper
Volkswagen Jetta
CATEGORY 5: MID-SIZED HATCHES/SEDANS – FAMILY VERSATILITY
Audi A3/A3 Sportback
BMW 1-Series
Ford Focus
Mercedes-Benz A-Class
Volkswagen Golf
Volvo V40
CATEGORY 6: PREMIUM CLASS ROAD WARRIORS
Audi A4
BMW 3-Series
Lexus IS
Mercedes-Benz C-Class
Subaru WRX
Volvo S60
CATEGORY 7: CARS FOR THE JUNIOR EXECUTIVE – BIG ON STATUS
Audi A5/A5 Sportback
Audi A6
BMW 3-Series GT
BMW 5-Series
Jaguar XF
Mercedes-Benz E-Class
CATEGORY 8: CARS FOR THE SENIOR EXECUTIVE – MORE STATUS STILL
Audi A8
BMW 6-Series
Jaguar XJ
Mercedes-Benz CLS
Mercedes-Benz S-Class
Porsche Panamera
CATEGORY 9: LUXURY AND POWER – THE CAPTAIN’S CHOICE
Aston Martin Rapide
Audi S8
Bentley Continental GT
Ferrari FF
Mercedes-Benz S-Class AMG
Rolls Royce Ghost
CATEGORY 10: WIND IN THE HAIR – CABRIOLETS AND CONVERTIBLES
Audi A3 Cabriolet
BMW 1-Series Convertible
Mazda MX-5 Roadster
Mini Cooper Convertible
Mini Cooper Roadster
Volkswagen Golf Cabriolet
CATEGORY 11: TRENDSETTERS – CABRIOLETS AND CONVERTIBLES
Audi A5 Cabrio
Audi TT Roadster
BMW Z4
Mercedes-Benz SLK
Porsche Boxster
Volkswagen Golf GTi
CATEGORY 12: DESIGNER LABELS – CABRIOLETS AND CONVERTIBLES
Audi RS5 Cabriolet
Audi TT RS Roadster
BMW M3 Convertible
Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet
Mercedes-Benz SLK AMG
Porsche 911 Carrera Cabriolet
CATEGORY 13: FOR THE REALLY RICH – CABRIOLETS AND CONVERTIBLES
Aston Martin Vantage Roadster
Audi R8 Spyder
Lamborghini Aventador Roadster
Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder
McLaren MP4-12C Spider
Mercedes-Benz SL63 AMG
CATEGORY 14: COOL COUPES – TWO-DOOR HARD TOPS
Audi A5 Coupé
Audi TT Coupé
BMW 3-Series Coupé
Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupé
Toyota 86
Volkswagen Scirocco
CATEGORY 15: HOT COUPÉS – FABULOUSLY FAST LANE
BMW M3 Coupé
Jaguar XK/XKR Coupé
Maserati Gran Turismo
Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupé
Nissan GT-R
Porsche 911 Carrera
CATEGORY 16: DREAM MACHINES – THE SUPERCAR LEAGUE
Aston Martin V12 Vantage
Audi R8 V10 Plus
Ferrari F12 Berlinetta
Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-4
McLaren MP4-12C
Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG
CATEGORY 17: YOUNG RACERS – AFFORDABLE HOT HATCHES
Audi S3
Ford Fiesta ST
Ford Focus ST
Volkswagen Golf GTI
Volkswagen Polo GTI
Volvo C30 T5 R-Design
CATEGORY 18: TRACK DAY SPECIALS – SUPER HOT HATCHES/COUPES
Audi RS5 Coupé
Audi TT RS
BMW 1-Series M Coupé
Lotus Elise
Porsche Cayman R
Volkswagen Scirocco R
CATEGORY 19: UPPING THE PACE – HIGH PERFORMANCE EXPRESSES
Audi S5 Sportback
BMW M5
BMW M6 Gran Coupé
Jaguar XFR
Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG
Subaru WRX STi
CATEGORY 20: STATION WAGONS – NEW STYLE FOR THE TRADITIONAL
Audi A4 Allroad
Audi RS4 Avant
Mercedes-Benz C-Class Estate
Mercedes-Benz CLS Shooting Brake
Volvo V40 Cross Country
Volvo V60
CATEGORY 21: COMPACT MPVs AND PEOPLE CARRIERS – FOR THE FAMILY
Mazda 5
Mercedes-Benz B-Class
Toyota Avanza
Toyota Verso
Volkswagen Caddy
Volkswagen Touran
CATEGORY 22: LARGE MPVs AND PEOPLE CARRIERS – FOR THE EXTENDED FAMILY
Ford Tourneo
Hyundai H-1
Mercedes-Benz Viano
Mercedes-Benz Vito
Toyota Quantum
Volkswagen T5 Kombi
CATEGORY 23: SUVs AND CROSSOVERS – CITY & SUBURBAN
Hyundai iX35
Jeep Compass
Kia Sportage
Nissan Qashqai
Nissan X-Trail
Volkswagen Tiguan
CATEGORY 24: SUVs AND CROSSOVERS – URBAN & PERI-URBAN
Audi Q3
Ford Kuga
Jeep Wrangler
Land Rover Defender
Toyota Fortuner
Toyota RAV4
CATEGORY 25: SUVs AND CROSSOVERS – TOWN & COUNTRY
Audi Q5
BMW X3
Jeep Grand Cherokee
Land Rover Freelander
Range Rover Evoque
Toyota Land Cruiser Prado
CATEGORY 26: SUVs AND CROSSOVERS – LUXURY TOURERS
Audi Q7
Land Rover Discovery
Mercedes-Benz ML
Porsche Cayenne
Range Rover
Range Rover Sport
CATEGORY 27: HYBRIDS – DAWN OF A NEW AGE
BMW ActiveHybrid 3
BMW ActiveHybrid 7
Mercedes-Benz E-Class Hybrid
Porsche Cayenne Hybrid
Porsche Panamera Hybrid
Toyota Prius
CATEGORY 28: LIGHT DELIVERY VANS – PICK ’N PACK
Ford Transit
Hyundai H-1 Panel Van
Mercedes-Benz Vito Panel Van
Toyota Quantum Panel Van
Volkswagen Caddy Panel Van
Volkswagen T5 Kombi Panel Van
CATEGORY 29: LIGHT LOAD LUGGERS – SINGLE CAB WORKHORSES
Chevrolet Utility
Ford Ranger
Nissan Navara King Cab
Toyota Hilux
Toyota Land Cruiser Pick Up
Volkswagen Amarok Pick Up
CATEGORY 30: ADVENTURE BAKKIES – FOR WORK ’N PLAY
Chevrolet Lumina Ute
Ford Ranger DC
Isuzu KB DC
Nissan Navara DC
Toyota Hilux DC
Volkswagen Amarok DC
To find out which cars are the winners – and which vehicle among the nominees scored the most votes overall – don’t forget to diarise breakfast at Montecasino on November 21, when all will be revealed at the Standard Bank People’s Wheels Awards 2014.