Mercedes celebrated a few awards alongside their chocolate eggs this Easter as the German brand swept the floor at the World Car Awards.
The manufacturer’s C Class model scooped the world car of the year award alongside a succession of other triumphs. The famous reveal of the gongs was combined with the opening day of the New York Auto Show.
The awards have come to rise in significance since the fledgling event back in 2004 and are decided by a secret ballot of 75 of the world’s most highly-regarded motoring journalists. Previous winners have included the Audi A3, Volkswagen Golf and Mazda2. The panel have come in for very little criticism and that is perhaps the greatest indication of it’s success.
However the success didn’t end for Mercedes with the manufacturer coming up trumps in the luxury car sector with the S Coupe and world performance car area thanks to the all-new AMG GT.
Despite the bucket-load of trophies obtained - Audi have still won the most of all manufacturers with a whopping seven but the latest round of prizes leaves Mercedes not far off the pace. This was the second-year running that the S-Class has featured in the Luxury Car division – a clear demonstration of the vehicle’s popularity and the exquisite attention to detail which graces both it’s exterior and interior.
Mercedes-Benz head of cars Dr. Dieter Zetsche described his pleasure at the awards: Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars, said he was “extremely delighted” with the C-Class’ win: “The C-Class is a best seller that has always been a trendsetter in the premium medium-size category. This is true for the new C-Class as well.
“It comes to the starting line with qualities usually reserved for higher-class automobiles – ecologically, technically and also with regard to comfort and driving pleasure.
“It embodies what we understand modern automotive luxury made by Mercedes-Benz to be and has all the prerequisites to be a huge success.”
Mercedes was also close to snatching the other awards on offer; finishing runner-up for Design only behind the unique Citroen C4 Cactus and was a serious challenger in the Green Car sector finishing behind the BMW i8 – a feat not be ashamed of.
