Car of the Year - Definition and Overview

Car of the Year is a phrase usually considered to have been invented by Motor Trend magazine in the 1950s for their annual award for best automobile. The magazine still gives this award.

It also refers to an award given yearly to the new automobile selected best by a jury of jounalists for motor magazines in Europe.

Although other similar awards exist in other parts of the world like Australia from the Australian automobile magazine Wheels and the AJAC in Canada, these two are the major ones that use the phrase, which is sometimes abbreviated COTY.

• World Car of the Year
• European Car of the Year
• North American Car of the Year
• Canadian Car of the Year
• Motor Trend magazine's Car of the Year
• Wheels magazine's Car of the Year
• Car and Driver magazine's Ten Best