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A Short History of COTY winners

The Wesbank Car of the Year (COTY) winner is usually announced at the end of February, which is about a month before the World Car of the Year is unveiled at the New York International Motor Show. Needless to say, the hype around South Africa's COTY remains intact and builds up nicely as the main event draws nearer. Likewise, this is written on the back of that build-up.

The past five years have been tremulous – South Africa came out of recession after the 2007/2008 disaster, and as recently as last year did petrol prices peak at R14.39 per litre before the crash that continues to happen today.

Both these major events have a direct impact on people's appetite to buy cars, and the popularity of the individual winners (and other finalists) in the COTY competition plays a part in the judges' decisions. I have compiled some price lists of each year's winner for the past 5 years.

Honda Accord 2.4 Executive

Many called it the most well-equipped sedan in its class back in 2010, and it was no surprise that the Honda Accord 2.4 Executive was that year's winner of South African Car of the Year. Sure this car doesn't have the Germanic badges that are much sort after by executive sedan buyers, but the durability and high standard of a Japanese car makes the Honda a worthy competitor. Our records show the retail selling price of this Accord was about R298,000 back in 2010, but that number has almost halved since 5 years ago and the cars under the Accord moniker are priced at an average R149,000 today.

Volkswagen Golf 6 1.4 Comfortline

I'm sure you will agree with other enthusiasts that the VW Golf 6 was a better looking car than the next generation, Golf 7. If not, then you must have only recently warmed up to the exterior look of the current G7. Nonetheless, it was the 2010 VW Golf 6 1.4 TSI Comfortline that stole the show at the 2011 awards. At a retail selling price of just over R238,000 back in 2011, the price of this car was behind 4 other contenders for Car of the Year. Today, the Golf 6 averages R225,000. That's a spectacular number given the retail price in 2011, or are some sellers asking too much?

BMW 530d

The prize in 2012 was shared by the elegant and powerful BMW 530d and the very popular VW Polo 1.6. This is rather an odd pairing since either of the cars are at different ends of the market. The 2011 version of the 530d was remarkably impressive, not least because of the Germans kitting it with Dynamic Drive Control, a system that allows you to tweak the car engine, gearbox, steering and even suspension to suite your own driving needs. This and the other tech and design that went into the 530d wouldn't have missed the eye of the judges and of course buyers. Currently, the price of this previous Car of the Year winner averages R321,600 which is fairly great for a 3 or so year old car, let alone a Beemer. Go back to 2012 when it won the title with the Polo, and a top of the range 530d retailed at around R630,000! BMW has had the most prestigious record in the competition.

Volkswagen Polo 1.6

It might be possible that the judges where really unsure about a clear winner, so they just decided on two. The Polo 1.6 TDI is a great car in its own right. Not only is it a best seller for VW, but also continues to offer new, entry-level car buyers a tried and tested staple that constantly reinvents itself. More people in South Africa call this their first car than any other car ever, and with good reason. The 2011 version has enough tech for its then price-range of about R195,000. These include a remote central locking system, a multi-function steering wheel, a multi-function display on the dashboard, and a whole lot of other tech that make the car worth it. Luckily, the price has obviously gone down a bit for second-hand versions, and our count puts an average figure of R138,000 for a Polo right now.

Hyundai Elantra

Many had no doubt about the Elantra's inclusion as a finalist in the 2011 competition, nor its eventual crowing as the overall winner when the judges judged in 2012. Most Asian cars in the Elantra's category are not really recognized as performance cars, however, this Honda is right up there with the best. At R229,900 the year it won, the Elantera was marketed as being able to speed from 0-100km/h in just under 8 seconds – 7.8 seconds to be exact. Rightly so, the performance of the Elantra was likened to some VW Golfs, which was something we're not used to. Today, these sell for an average R175,000. That's not bad for a 2 to 3 year old car of this stature.

Porsche Cayman S

The most recent winner of the South African Wesbank Car of the Year competition is the Porsche Cayman S. I personally like this car. It's also the priciest of COTY winners in a very long time. When you're old and have stories to tell your grand kids, the mention of you driving a Cayman sounds way cooler than a Opel for example. Porsche has had a good record in the past two years, with the Porsche Macan S Diesel currently in the running for this year's prize.

That small SUV's 180 kW horsepower and 230 km/h top speed make it the leader in its class that includes cars such as the Range Rover Evoque and Mercedes-Benz GLA. Today's Caymans can retail for between R800,00 to R900,000.

The thing about Car of the Year competitions is the diversity of the vehicles contesting. This year's competition is not lacking in that as well, and it the run up to the title has been interesting given the slew of other car releases by the very same brands on the list. Who do you think will be the winner this year?

The reviews and prices where collected from The Kinsey Report, Used Cars For Sale, and Gumtree.

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