The Car of the Year is the pick of all new cars launched in New Zealand in the 12 months to October this year while the category winners are selected from all new cars that are available on the market right now.
Guild members and the selected AA voters will select the Car of the Year from a list of 10 finalists while the category winners come from a much bigger pool of available new cars.
Ms Stocks says that because of the structure of the awards, consumers can be sure that the judges are looking at all elements of every type of new car available to come up with the best.
"Not everyone is in the market for a new car, but one of the benefits of the New Zealand Car of the Year award is that the selections endure. The winners in 2014 will still be good cars in three or four years as they become used cars," she says.
The top 10 finalists for the New Zealand Car of the Year are:
• Mazda3
• Honda Jazz
• Nissan Qashqai
• Nissan X-Trail
• Mercedes-Benz C-Class
• Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV
• Toyota Highlander
• BMW M3/4
• Jeep Cherokee
• Range Rover Sport
NZMWG President Liz Dobson says it that there was already strong feedback from the motoring writers on the finalists of the New Zealand Car of the Year.
"The voting for the final 10 by Guild members is robust, with strong opinions on what vehicles should and shouldn't be in the list," she says.
"I know that quite a few motoring writers have had some tough decisions to make when it came to their voting.
"The Guild members write for an array of motoring publications and come from both rural areas and cities so there are many different perspectives on what should be the Car of the Year."
