The jury for the 2023 North American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Year (NACTOY) Awards has picked the nine finalist vehicles at the Los Angeles Auto Show.
Out of 26 vehicles voted semifinalists earlier this year from an initial field of 47 eligible vehicles, NACTOY's 50 jurors from the United States and Canada determined the nine finalists following an extensive test-drive and evaluation period.
According to NACTOY's press release, the jurors vote based on elements including automotive innovation, design, safety, performance, technology, driver satisfaction, user experience and value. As a sign of the times, there's at least one electric vehicle in each of the three categories (car, truck and SUV) this year, with one category being exclusively made up of EVs.
Without further ado, here are the finalists for each category, in alphabetical order.
North American Car of the Year:
- Acura Integra
- Genesis G80 EV
- Nissan Z
North American Truck of the Year:
- Chevrolet Silverado ZR2
- Ford F-150 Lightning
- Lordstown Endurance
North American Utility Vehicle of the Year:
As you can see, six of the nine vehicles are all-electric, a record for the NACTOY award. Furthermore, the SUV category is made up entirely of EVs, marking another first.
One thing that sticks out is the presence of the Lordstown Endurance as a finalist in the truck category. The electric pickup started production in September, but only two units were made as of September 29. The startup expects to start sales this quarter, subject to full homologation testing and required certification.
"Our nine finalists for 2023 represent a diverse cross-section of this year's best new vehicles, ranging from sports cars to powerful pickups to three electric utility vehicles – which is the first time in our history that all three finalists in a specific category are battery-electric.
Our jurors drew on their deep industry expertise and unique testing and evaluation techniques to narrow the field from 26 semifinalists to three vehicles in each category, which include a record-breaking six electric vehicles."
NACTOY President Gary Witzenburg
The selection of nine finalists is the second-to-last step in the year-long evaluation process for the three awards. Final voting will take place between December 30, 2022 and January 5, 2023, with the 2023 NACTOY Car, Truck and Utility of the Year winners to be announced at a special event in Detroit on January 11, 2023.
Last year, there was no electric vehicle among the winners. The Honda Civic was the North American Car of the Year, the Ford Maverick won the truck category and the Bronco took the utility class.
