Best in class winners

The NZ Car of the Year winners for best in class have been announced. They are the Ford Fiesta, Suzuki Swift, Volkswagen Polo, Mazda6, Holden Commodore, and the Ford Fiesta ST. Best small car is the Ford Fiesta. The Suzuki Swift and Volkswagen Polo were close contenders. Best medium car is the Mazda6, which triumphed over both BMW 3 series and the Lexus IS. Best large car went to the Holden Commodore ahead of the Skoda Superb and the Honda Accord V6. Best sports/performance car is the Ford Fiesta ST, which sat in among a very diverse field in this class along with finalists the Jaguar F Type and Subaru BRZ. Stephanie Welsh from Trade Me presented the small-medium SUV award which went to the Mazda CX5, beating the Ford Cougar and Subaru Impreza. The Ford Ranger won the best utility award, beating the Mazda BT50 and Volkswagen Amarok. Euan Philpot from Jevic presented the Large SUV award which went to the Range Rover, beating the BMW X5 and Range Rover sport. The compact category winner was the Volkswagen Golf, beating the Mercedes Benz A Class and the Ford Focus. The judges it offers a premium European driving experience and quality, but with mainstream prices. The best in class luxury car went to the BMW 5 Series, beating the Mercedes Benz E Class, and the Lexus GS. The judges said its lavishly equipped, with nimble driving dynamics. The safest car went to Volvo V40,   beating the Subaru Forester and Audi A5. The V40 boasts impressive occupant safety and a range of safety assist technologies to help minimise the chance of a crash.