Dacia Spring has been voted “AUTOBEST 2022” winner, the European accolade for The Best Buy Car of Europe in 2022. With a total of 14.674 points, Dacia Spring came in first place by a comfortable distance over the new generation of Skoda Fabia with 13.364 points. The new Opel Mokka came in third place with a total of 13.312 points, only 52 points less than the runner-up of the AUTOBEST competition. Detailed results will be listed in the Final Ranking section on www.autobest.org.
`After the outstanding results in ECOBEST Challenge 2021- a leading project of AUTOBEST organization- Dacia Spring won the coveted accolade of Best Buy Car of Europe in 2022! The first Dacia EV’s is the most popular EV in Europe and the first full EV becoming an AUTOBEST Finalist in our 21 years of the competition. The new philosophy of the brand to carry only the essentials is making Spring the most affordable urban and commuting car available on the European markets. With an outstanding range and energy efficiency, the small EV impressed many of the 32 Jury members making the victory on European level. At AUTOBEST we believe that next year, Spring will make an important contribution to the democratization of the EV’s in Europe.` stated Ilia Seliktar, President of the Jury.
„At AUTOBEST we previewed years ago the future of electromobility. We said in many occasion that the transition to ZEV – Zero Emission Vehicles- is faster than many people think and 2022 is probably the year of inflection when the number of new EV’s in almost any segment will start to become relevant on the market. In this journey, Dacia Spring is having the mission to show that an EV can be affordable to anyone, can help cities on the decarbonization process with customers eager to drive only electric. Also, this new premiere in AUTOBEST history is another proof of our organization keeping the pace with the complicated times we are all living in Europe. As always, we are doing our job in time, announcing our winners in respect to our tradition. At AUTOBEST we all hope next year to give us more freedom to travel and drive, to come back to more normal activities – as we have many things to do. Although we are successful in `mission impossible` situations – like the last two Final Tests in 2020 and 2021, organized under the total lockdown of Austria- we are confident that Europe will find the best way out of these pandemic times.` declared Dan Vardie, Founder & Chairman of AUTOBEST organization.
For the second time, AUTOBEST organized successfully the Final Test in Teesdorf, Austria, at the end of November during, the total lockdown of the country. Respecting all the Austrian rules imposed under the lockdown, AUTOBEST, having the professional help of our friends from OAMTC proving ground in Teesdorf, managed to organize the most complex set of tests available in motoring media today.
The COMPANYBEST 2022 award goes to Pininfarina, one of the greatest expressions of that Italian design renowned all over the world. Founded in Turin in 1930 and today owned by Mahindra Group, Pininfarina has created some of the most beautiful automotive designs, enjoying long associations with storied brands such as Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Peugeot, Maserati and Ferrari. After a difficult period of time, in the last years the Italian legend is back on track with outstanding results. Among other projects, Pininfarina is helping rising companies — such as VinFast — by playing a leading role in outlining the style of their models and the identity of the brand.
This year’s inductee to the ‘MANBEST’ Hall of Fame is Mate Rimac. A risingstar of the European car industry, at the age of 23 he demonstrated to the world that electric mobility can bring fun and performance unimaginable to traditional combustion power. Following ten years of dedication, determination and a vision to the future, Mate Rimac now leads Bugatti-Rimac, a company that bridges the old and new worlds of automotive. From humble beginnings, the Rimac name is now renowned for being at the leading edge of electrification and associated with many brands including Porsche, Hyundai, Kia, Aston Martin and Automobili Pininfarina.
The Renault Megane E-Tech is the winner of ECOBEST 2022 award. Renault’s development team has not only created an electric car where performance and handling are not compromised by weight or limited by range. Above all, passenger space is not impacted by the design and layout of the powertrain. The result is an equilibrium of an electric family hatchback with a roomy and versatile interior that is powerful enough with significant range and very enjoyable driving manners.
The SAFETYBEST 2022 award is going to Isuzu D-Max as the first pickup to score 5 stars in Euro NCAP test. Pickup drivers have been shortchanged on safety for too long and Isuzu is changing that. The new D-Max sets a high bar for both passive safety and active safety features. The inclusion of forward stereo cameras brings a new level of driver and pedestrian protection to the sector, which has rightly been rewarded by Euro NCAP. In delivering the first pickup to score a five-star rating. Isuzu is a very deserving winner of the SAFETYBEST award.
The SMARTBEST 2022 award is goingto Mercedes-Benz for the MBUX Hyperscreen in the EQS.
This new high-end technology plays a major role in active safety thanks to its A.I. that learns the preferences of the driver and recognises them, meaning the main functions are always ready to use and do not need to choose between plenty of menus before driving. Smart ergonomics and proactive actions, including its interaction with navigation functions, means that the driver does not have take their eyes off the road to perform certain tasks. The A.I. also detects whether the driver looks at the passenger screen or not and eventually switches it off if it’s the case.
The SPORTBEST 2022 awardgoes to Alejandro Agag for creating Extreme E after the successful ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. A smart businessman with an exceptional career, Agag was also fascinated by sports, mainly motor racing, and football. When he prepared to launch the first electric racing series in 2014, he was ahead of his time. Now running the official ABB FIA Formula E World Championship and the Extreme E series, Alejandro Agag is a deserving recipient of the SPORTBEST 2022 award.
The new `DESIGNBEST` Hall of Famer and the `TECHNOBEST 2022` winner will be announced at a later date.
The 21st AUTOBEST Awards will take place on a date and place to be announced in the coming months. At AUTOBEST, the safety of all our guests and Jury members is of paramount importance. Therefore, we will closely monitor the development of the pandemic situation in Europe. Following the tradition, the AUTOBEST International Jury will present the awards in a different country each year. The 20-th Anniversary AUTOBEST Gala was held on September 30-th in Barcelona, Spain.
The European AUTOBEST Jury thanks the readers from all over Europe for encouraging the project and the various PR departments responsible in the automotive industry for providing all the support in organising meetings and drive tests of the new products.
About AUTOBEST
The AUTOBEST organisation was created in 2001 with the revolutionary concept of finding the ‘Best Buy Car’ available on the European market. For a car to become an AUTOBEST winner, it must represent the best offer for most European customers. Price, service network, spare parts distribution and versatility are the most important criteria in the voting process. Design and new technologies are also becoming a more critical factor for voting. AUTOBEST uses a transparent voting system, with a complex matrix of 13 criteria to decide the winner.
