Best of 2024: The Vehicles Vying To Be NACOTY

The recently revamped Chevrolet Colorado made the shortlist. The truck category might only have five semifinalists, but it is still easy to spot the resurgent popularity of mid-size pickups. The Colorado might be a venerable workhorse, but it hasn’t been entirely immune to recent trends either.

The GMC Canyon also joins its General Motors sibling on the list. The upscale appearance and build quality seemed to be enough to differentiate the Canyon from the Colorado, leading both to be named as semifinalists.

The Chevrolet Silverado EV is the final General Motors truck and the only electric vehicle to advance to the semi-finals in the truck category. Admittedly, it’s hard not to be impressed by the Silverado’s EPA-estimated 450 miles of range.

The Ford Ranger is another mid-size pickup entry advancing to the truck category’s semi-finals. Ford has won North American Truck of the Year for the last three years.

The Ford Super Duty will take on the trio of mid-size pickups and the electric Silverado. A Super Duty victory won complete a Grand Slam, with Ford winning the award with vastly different kinds of truck. The F-150 in 2021, the Maverick in 2022 and the F-150 Lightning in 2023.

The Dodge Hornet, the brand’s hot hatch-esque crossover, has been nominated in the utility vehicle category. The Hornet is the only Stellantis vehicle to make the list of 25 semifinalists.

The stylish yet utilitarian Hyundai Kona also made the shortlist in the utility vehicle category.

The revamped Honda Pilot has advanced to the semi-finals. The fourth-generation Pilot has much more aggressive styling than its predecessors.

The Mazda CX90, the automaker’s luxury SUX, made the shortlist likely due to its combination of high-performance capabilities and classy styling. Mazda last won the award in 2008 with CX-9.

The Toyota Grand Highlander might be the largest SUV to make the semi-finals. The massive SUV lives up to its name, with Toyota claiming that the third row can fit full-sized adults.

The Chevrolet Equinox EV has advanced to the next round. Half of the utility vehicle category’s semi-final spots were given to electric vehicles.

The Chevrolet Blazer EV is the second electric GM crossover in the semi-final’s field of ten contenders. General Motors has never won this category’s award.

The Genesis GV70, the automaker’s first model built in the United States, has been nominated for the semi-finals. Genesis vehicles have made the finals for the past three years but have never won.

The KIA EV9 has advanced to the semi-finals as KIA aims to repeat last year’s success after the EV6 won North American Utility Vehicles of the Year.

The Volvo EX30 is the last semifinalist for the utility vehicle category. Volvo used to be a perennial contender for the award, but the Swedish automaker hasn’t won since 2018.

The Toyota Crown is the first of three Toyota models to make the semi-finals for North American Car of the Year.

The sleek new Toyota Prius was understandably nominated for the next round. Toyota last won North American Car of the Year in 2004 with the second-generation Prius.

The Toyota GR Corolla completes the trio of Toyota contenders. The Japanese automaker’s strong presence in the semi-finals exemplifies its position in the market as a whole.

The new BMW 5 Series has been nominated for the semi-finals. BMW is the only German manufacturer with a vehicle in this year’s semi-finals.

The BMW i5, the electrified version of the 5 Series, has also advanced to the next round as a different entry. The i5 is one of only two electric vehicles to make the semi-finals.

The Hyundai Ioniq 6 is the other electric vehicle semifinalist in the car category. The Ioniq 5 was a finalist in the utility vehicle category in 2022 but lost to the Ford Bronco.

The Honda Accord is also moving on to the semi-final. Honda has won North American Car of the Year four times, most recently with the new Civic in 2022.

The venerable Subaru Impreza is also among the semi-finalists. Subaru has never won the award in any category.

The Ford Mustang is one of only two domestic cars to reach the semi-finals. Ford hasn’t won the award since 2010 with the Fusion Hybrid, a model that no longer exists.

The hybrid Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray is the other domestic car to be nominated. The Corvette has won North American Car of the Year three times in 1998, 2014 and 2020.