8:07 am, March 2, 2021
The Toyota Yaris has clinched the Car of the Year 2021 title beating the Fiat 500 Electric and Cupra Formentor.
The Japanese supermini was named the victor at a ceremony held at the Palexpo exhibition centre in Geneva, on the eve of when the 2021 Geneva Motor Show would have been held.
The Yaris, which is hybrid-only, scored 266 points from judges, beating the Fiat 500 Electric with 240 points and the Cupra Formentor, 239 points.
The top three was followed by the Volkswagen ID.3 (224 points), Skoda Octavia (199 points), Land Rover Defender (164 points) and the Citroen C4 (143 points).
It’s the second time the Yaris has taken home the top gong – the first Yaris won Car of the Year 2000.
Matt Harrison, executive vice president of Toyota Motor Europe, said: ‘This is a great honour for Toyota and I thank the jury for their consideration and recognition.
‘I would also like to take this opportunity to recognise the passion of our development teams in Europe and Japan.
‘This the best ever Yaris and, just as Toyota President Akio Toyoda intended, it is already putting a smile on the faces of our customers.’
Meanwhile, as the Car of the Year awards were being announced, the category winners for the UK Car of the Year awards were published.
Best City Car – Honda e
Best Supermini – Toyota Yaris
Best Small Hatch – VW ID.3
Best Family Car and Best Estate – Skoda Octavia
Best Luxury – Mercedes-Benz S-Class
Best Small Crossover – Ford Puma
Best Medium Crossover – Ford Kuga
Best Large Crossover – Land Rover Defender
Best Coupe – BMW 4 Series
Best Open Top – Lexus LC Convertible
Best Performance – Toyota GR Yaris
Each winner in the 12 categories will now go head-to-head to win the overall title, which will be announced on March 8.
