{"id":33950,"date":"2025-01-11T14:41:09","date_gmt":"2025-01-11T18:41:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=33950"},"modified":"2025-01-11T14:41:09","modified_gmt":"2025-01-11T18:41:09","slug":"here-are-the-winners-2025-north-american-car-truck-utility-of-the-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/here-are-the-winners-2025-north-american-car-truck-utility-of-the-year","title":{"rendered":"Here are the winners: 2025 North American Car, Truck, Utility of the Year"},"content":{"rendered":"

Detroit<\/em>\u00a0\u2014 The envelope, please . . .<\/p>\n

Winners of the 2025 North American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Year are the Honda Civic Hybrid, Ford Ranger and Volkswagen ID.Buzz. The prestigious NACTOY awards kicked off the Detroit Auto Show Media Day on Friday morning as the event returned to its traditional January slot as the first auto show of the year.<\/p>\n

\"Jim<\/figure>\n
Jim Baumbick, vice president for product development for Ford, and Joe McCarty, the marketing manager for Maverick and Ranger, hold the trophy for Truck of the Year after the Ford Ranger won the honor during the Detroit Auto Show, at Huntington Place, in Detroit, January 10, 2025. David Guralnick, The Detroit News<\/em><\/figure>\n

In a competitive field of nominees, the popular Honda won its fourth NACTOY trophy but the Ranger and ID.Buzz scored upsets as the Toyota Tacoma and Chevy Equinox EV were early favorites in the truck and SUV categories. Detroit brands scored four nominations, with the Ford winning for the fifth straight year in the truck category.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith such a tremendous crop of vehicles to review, our jurors worked overtime to decide the \u2018best of the best,\u2019\u201d said NACTOY President Jeff Gilbert, NACTOY president and WWJ Radio auto reporter, who handed out trophies to the recipients.. \u201cThis year’s winners are on the cutting edge when it comes to technology, styling and value.\u201d<\/p>\n

Car of the Year<\/h2>\n

\"Honda<\/p>\n<\/div>

Honda Zone Manager Josh Beckner with the Honda Civic Hybrid, which topped the Kia K4 and Toyota Camry to win North American Car of the Year honors at the Detroit Auto Show at Huntington Place on Friday, Jan. 10, 2025.David Guralnick, The Detroit News<\/em><\/p>\n

In a comfortable win, the $29,845 Civic Hybrid Honda Civic Hybrid (205 votes) beat out the $23,145 Kia K4 (165 votes), and $29,535 Toyota Camry (130) for top car. The Civic has been offered as a hybrid trim in the past, but this is the first time it\u2019s expected to be the model\u2019s best-seller.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a tremendous honor,\u201d said Josh Beckner, Midwest Honda Zone Manager, who accepted the award. \u201cThe hybrid is a key part of our electrification strategy as we go all-electric.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Civic Hybrid starts at about the same price as the bigger Camry, which is only offered with hybrid drivetrains. Though perennially the best-selling sedan in the U.S., Camry has never brought home a NACTOY trophy. The Kia is a Civic competitor in the compact segment \u2014 and the brand\u2019s replacement for the Forte compact sedan. The K4 significantly undercuts the Civic Hybrid\u2019s price, but jurors knocked its polarizing styling and for not offering a hybrid option like its competitors.<\/p>\n

Truck of the Year<\/h2>\n

The truck battle between the $34,575 Ford Ranger, $42,270 Ram 1500 and $32,995 Toyota Tacoma was a nail-biter. The two mid-size segment competitors have been significantly upgraded for \u201825 with state-of-the-art electronic systems and high-flying off-road variants like the Tacoma TRD Pro and Ranger Raptor. But the Ram boasted a new inline-6 cylinder drivetrain and its range-topping, $71k RHO super truck is aimed squarely the iconic F-150 Raptor.<\/p>\n

In the end, the Ranger won the day with 183 votes to the Ram\u2019s 161 and the Taco\u2019s 156. An early favorite, the best-selling-in-segment Toyota was knocked by jurors for its high price and initial quality problems.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Ford Ranger starts at $34,575 and the well-equipped SuperCrew 4×4 XLT has a base price of $39,646,\u201d said juror Drew Winter, contributing editor for WardsAuto. \u201cIt’s a midsize truck that looks like a full-size F-150, has combined fuel economy of 20 mpg and can tow 7,500 pounds. It has a solid and refined chassis, a nice interior and is a good choice for budget-conscious buyers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Utility of the Year<\/h2>\n

\"Petar<\/p>\n

Petar Danilovic, the senior vice president for product marketing and strategy for Volkswagen, with the VW ID Buzz, the North American Utility Vehicle of the Year, at the Detroit Auto Show at Huntington Place on Jan. 10, 2025.David Guralnick, The Detroit News<\/em><\/p>\n

The $61,545 Volkswagen ID.Buzz may have been the most expensive vehicle in the field, but it was also the most distinctive \u2014 remaking the iconic VW Minibus as an EV.<\/p>\n

In another tight race, it edged the stylish, three-row $35,615 Hyundai Santa Fe by 187 votes to 185. The $34,995 Chevrolet Equinox EV was a distant third with 128 votes.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you have to drive a minivan, why not drive the one everybody waves to and just wants to hug?\u201d said juror Ken Gross. \u201cSeriously, the ID. Buzz has a decent 230-plus mile range, beaucoup space inside, lots of useful features and it\u2019s fun to drive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Compact SUVs are the biggest segment in the market and the $35k Chevy Equinox EV was the favorite with its affordable EV price. But the three-row ID.Buzz wowed jurors with its auto sliding doors and clever, removable seats.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat an amazing way to start the year,\u201d said Petar Danilovic, VW senior vice president for product marketing and strategy. \u201cHow many chances do we have to bring back an icon to the the USA? This is a special vote for true car lovers.\u201d<\/p>\n

NACTOY finalists reflected the jurors\u2019 practical streak as the nominees offer affordable transportation in a market saturated by high-priced EVs, SUV and an average transaction price approaching $50,000. Though pricey EVs made up nearly half the 25 semifinalists that jurors considered at their October national test, only two made the final round. Manufacturers must meet onerous government EV mandates, but the market cooled in 2024 to just 8% EV sales.<\/p>\n

NACTOY finalists average price $36,057. The most expensive finalist was the Volkswagen EV. The cheapest was the Kia at $23,145.<\/p>\n

In its 32nd<\/sup>\u00a0year, NACTOY honors vehicles that excel across several criteria, including innovation, design, safety, performance, technology, user experience, driver satisfaction and value. Judged by an independent jury of 50 journalists (including the author of this article) from the U.S. and Canada, NACTOY is one of the industry\u2019s most prestigious trophies.<\/p>\n

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne<\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Detroit\u00a0\u2014 The envelope, please . . . Winners of the 2025 North American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Year are the Honda Civic Hybrid, Ford Ranger and Volkswagen ID.Buzz. The prestigious NACTOY awards kicked off the Detroit Auto Show Media Day on Friday morning as the event returned to its traditional January slot […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,87],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33950"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33950"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33950\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33951,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33950\/revisions\/33951"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33950"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33950"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33950"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}