What's the news?
Nissan's Qashqai has taken the top prize at the inaugural Car of the Year Awards presented by the Association of Professional Motoring Press. The APMP is a group of Ireland's most widely read motoring journalists, writers and broadcasters. CompleteCar.ie's Shane O' Donoghue, Paul Healy, Dave Humphreys and Neil Briscoe are all members of the Association.
The awards were handed out during a gala black tie ceremony held in the Powerscourt Hotel in Wicklow. While the Qashqai scooped the main prize on the night, there were also numerous awards handed out to best-in-category winners - a way of ensuring that all the best cars of the year achieve some recognition. Alfa Romeo took the first award of the evening, winning the APMP Performance Car of the Year, and it was joined by the BMW 2 Series as the Coupé/Cabriolet of the Year, the Citroen C4 Cactus in the Small SUV of the Year, the new MINI Hatch in the Small Car of the Year and the Audi A3 Saloon in the Family Car of the Year categories. Mercedes-Benz took home the Large Family Car of the Year award for the C-Class. The Qashqai added the Mid-Size SUV of the Year award to its overall win, while the Audi A8 won Luxury Car of the Year. Mitsubishi joined Audi in taking home two awards - its Outlander PHEV winning both the Large SUV of the Year and Innovation Award.
Hyundai's i10 was named City Car of the Year.
APMP Chairperson Michael Sheridan said "APMP awards are adjudicated on by the most respected motoring writers in Ireland from national newspapers, radio and TV to the best internet commentators. With over 45 publications among the voters' outlets, the awards are highly credible and desired by all car and van manufacturers."
Anything else?
Vans and commercial vehicles were not forgotten. The triumvirate of the Peugeot Boxer, Fiat Ducato and Citroen Relay won both the overall APMP Van of the Year award and the Panel Van of the Year, while Ford picked up two awards - the Transit Courier taking City Van of the Year and the Transit Connect winning Small Van of the Year. Land Rover's Discovery Business won Business SUV of the Year.
Further reading:
Citroen C4 Cactus Irish road test
Audi A3 Saloon Irish road test
Mercedes-Benz C-Class Irish first drive
Nissan Qashqai Irish road test