2008
Concept Vehicle Nominees
Award Jury
South
East Automotive Media Organization Announces
2007 Concept Vehicle of the Year Award Winners
Detroit, MI, June 21 - The sixth annual North American
Concept Vehicle of the Year Awards were announced this
evening during a ceremony at the Automotive Hall of Fame.
Organized by the South East Automotive Media Organization,
the awards recognize those vehicles most likely to shape
the future of the automobile industry.
A jury of more
than two dozen professional automotive journalists from
throughout North America selected the winners from 33
Concept Vehicles and 11 Production Preview Vehicles that
made a North American debut during the 2007 Auto Show
season. The Concept Award jury panel is assembled by peer
selection, and the jurors do not pay or get paid to participate.
The Production
Preview category is for those vehicles based on a model
that has already been announced or planned for production.
Emphasizing the importance of concept vehicles as "reality
check" between the design and production stages of
development, the Production Preview category has grown
steadily over the past few years.
Returning to
a familiar spot at the North American Concept Vehicle
Awards, Jaguar is back to take the honor of 2007 Production
Preview Vehicle of the Year with its C-XF Concept. According
to juror Chris Poole, "The C-XF reinterprets Jaguar's
traditional "grace-space-pace" in a fresh, original
new way – which is no easy task. And all without
a sign of retro."
As always,
the Concept Car category was hotly contested in 2007.
This year, no less than 23 outstanding nominees were competing
for the top honor in the Concept Car category. Sneaking
in at the Detroit Auto Show with some "Thunder From
Down Under," GM's Holden division shows that the
"retro" craze is as strong as ever with the
Holden EFIJY, winner of the 2007 Concept Car of the Year
award.
"This
retro styled Coupe is reminiscent of the custom bodied
show cars from the late 1930s," said jury member
Bob Kroupa. "Built on a Corvette modern-day chassis
with a supercharged engine pushing 600 HP and including
all of today's creature comforts, this is a real winner."
The Truck &
SUV category for 2007 produced a truly diverse range of
ideas for the future of the light truck market. DaimlerChrysler
makes its fourth trip to the podium in this category for
2007, and the second visit for its Jeep brand, with the
Jeep Trailhawk concept taking this year's award for Concept
Truck of the Year.
According to
juror Kevin Kelly, "Jeep's Trailhawk takes the signature
Jeep design to the next level, providing a cool factor."
The Specialty
Concept category was established to recognize those vehicles
outside the mainstream purpose or definition of a car
or truck, as well as those vehicles where the technology,
not the package, is the key story. Showcasing a drivetrain
and control architecture designed to work with power sources
ranging from a fuel cell, to a plug-in hybrid, to a battery-only
power supply, the Chevrolet Volt earned its spot as the
2007 Specialty Concept Vehicle of the Year.
Underscoring
this concept's versatility, jury member Ashly Knapp said,
"I'm sure GM is betting billions of dollars over
the next decade on being recharged by the innovative Volt.
The choices of powertrains may be unmatched in the near
term. The styling is traditional and comforting, yet filled
with cues from our highly digital world."
From amongst
these four category winners, the Chevrolet Volt was top-scoring
vehicle by a wide margin, earning the top spot as "Most
Significant Concept Vehicle of 2007."
Additional
information and details regarding the nominees, the selection
jury and the award winners can be found by visiting www.northamericanconceptawards.org
on the web.
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