2011 ICOTY & IMOTY Awards announced

The recipients of India’s most prestigious automotive honors, the Indian Car of the Year and Indian Motorcycle of the Year 2011 were announced recently. This is the sixth edition of this annual event which has been modeled along the likes of European and North American Car of the Year titles. With journalists from top automotive publications across the country like Overdrive, Auto Bild, Top Gear, Car India, BS Motoring and Auto India being the jurors, Ford Figo and Honda CBF Stunner have come out on tops.

Apart from the Ford Figo, the final contenders for the ICOTY title included models like Volkswagen Polo and Vento, Tata Aria, Skoda Yeti, Nissan Micra, Chevrolet Beat and Maruti-Suzuki Wagon-R. When the final tally was declared, the Figo had comfortably trounced the competitors with a comfortable margin. It has not only lived up to the hype that it created with Ford’s CEO Mr. Alan Mulally himself unveiling the car to the Indian public, but has also exceeded the expectations with over 60,000 units sold since launch. It has won the acclaim of critics and customers alike and has given Ford unprecedented volume and growth in India.



2011 ICOTY RESULTS:



1. Ford Figo – 83

2. Volkswagen Vento – 57

3. Volkswagen Polo / Skoda Yeti – 37



PREVIOUS ICOTY WINNERS:



    * 2010 – Tata Nano

    * 2009 – Honda City

    * 2008 – Hyundai i10

    * 2007 – Honda Civic

    * 2006 – Maruti-Suzuki Swift



Unlike the ICOTY award, there seemed to be a slug fest for the IMOTY 2011 title with the Honda CB Twister taking the crown by a meager margin of 3 points. This latest offering from Honda has brought style, flair and refinement which are unheard of in the mass market commuter bike segment. Bajaj’s critically acclaimed, feature-laden, sporty yet efficient Pulsar 135 LS made life difficult for the CB Twister by finishing a close second with TVS’s technologically-superior Jive finishing third. The other finalists for the award included Bajaj Discover 150, Mahindra Stallio and TVS Max4R.  



2011 IMOTY RESULTS:



1. Honda CB Twister – 66

2. Bajaj Pulsar 135 LS – 63

3. TVS Jive - 48



PREVIOUS IMOTY WINNERS:



    * 2010 – Kawasaki Ninja 250R

    * 2009 – Yamaha YZR R15

    * 2008 – Bajaj Pulsar 220 DTS-Fi