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2021 Ram 1500 TRX Joins NACTOY Eligibility List

NACTOY Updates List of 46 Cars, Utilities and Trucks for 2021 Awards

DETROIT, August 18, 2020 – The North American Car, Utility and Truck of the Year (NACTOY) Awards has added the 2021 Ram 1500 TRX performance truck to its list of eligible vehicles for the 2021 awards.

“The Ram 1500 TRX – whose existence has been embargoed until today – completes our list of 46 eligible vehicles for 2021 NACTOY Car, Truck and Utility of the year Awards,” said NACTOY president Gary Witzenburg.

NACTOY accepted vehicle entries from automakers later than usual this year to better accommodate an unusual product launch cycle impacted by COVID-19. Still, the pace of innovative product introductions from the industry has been intense.

“With 13 cars, four trucks and a mind-boggling 29 utility vehicles – many of them late-year launches – contending for these coveted awards, it will be another exciting and highly competitive year,” Witzenburg said.

NACTOY’s 50 jurors will conduct an initial vote to reduce this list of eligible vehicles to a more manageable number of Semi-Finalists on Sept. 28 – about a month later than normal – to allow automakers with late entries more time to get NACTOY jurors into them for evaluation prior to that vote.

Jurors will continue to test and evaluate all eligible vehicles as they are made available through the rest of this year, including during an Oct. 5-8 annual comparison drive.

Semi-Finalists in each category will be announced in November at the LA Auto Show, Finalists in December and category winners in Detroit in January 2021.

To be eligible, vehicles must be all-new or substantially new and must be available at dealerships before the end of the year.

The Updated List of 2021 NACTOY Candidates with Additions:

Car of the Year

Acura TLX

Audi A8 L 60 TFSI e

BMW 330e and 330e xDrive

BMW 430i, 430i xDrive and M440i xDrive

Cadillac CT4/CT4-V

Genesis G80

Hyundai Elantra family (includes N Line and HEV)

Kia K5

Lexus IS

Mercedes-Benz E Class Sedan, All-Terrain, Coupe, Cabriolet

MINI Cooper SE

Nissan Sentra

Polestar 2

Utility of the Year

Audi Q5 55 TFSI e

BMW X3 xDrive30e

BMW X5 xDrive45e

Buick Encore GX

Cadillac Escalade

Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban

Chevrolet Trailblazer

Chrysler Pacifica

Dodge Durango

Ford Bronco Sport

Ford Mustang Mach E

Genesis GV80

GMC Yukon/Yukon XL

Honda CR-V Hybrid

Hyundai Santa Fe

Hyundai Venue

Kia Seltos

Kia Sorento

Land Rover Defender 90 and 110

Lincoln Corsair Grand Touring

Mazda CX-30

Mercedes-Benz GLA

Nissan Rogue

Toyota Highlander

Toyota RAV4 Prime

Toyota Sienna

Toyota Venza

Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport

Volvo XC40 P8 Recharge

Truck of the Year

*Ram 1500 TRX

Ford F-150

Ford Super Duty

Jeep Gladiator Mojave

*Added to list

Spanish and French versions of this release will be available on NACTOY’s website. For more information about NACTOY and its history: http://northamericancaroftheyear.org.

ABOUT NORTH AMERICAN CAR, UTILITY AND TRUCK OF THE YEAR

The awards are intended to recognize the most outstanding new vehicles of the year. These vehicles are benchmarks in their segments based on factors including innovation, design, safety, handling, driver satisfaction and value for the dollar. The organization gives out three awards. They are: “North American Car of the Year,” “North American Utility Vehicle of the Year,” and “North American Truck of the Year.” The awards are unique because they are given by an independent jury of automotive journalists from the United States and Canada instead of being given by a single publication, website, radio or television station.

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