Nine Finalists Selected for 2025 NACTOY Awards
Today at the Los Angeles Auto Show, the North American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Year (NACTOY) awards organization named three cars, three trucks and three utility vehicles as its 2025 finalists.
“The competition for these awards will be fierce this year,” said NACTOY President Jeff Gilbert. “We have a well-balanced crop of EVs, hybrids and gasoline-powered vehicles. It will be hard to narrow each category down to just one winner. They’re all great choices.”
- Also: Toyota Prius, Kia EV9, Ford Super Duty Win 2024 NACTOY Awards
- Also: 2025 Kia K4 vs. 2025 Honda Civic: The Numbers
2025 North American Car of the Year
None of the finalists this year comes from an American automaker, which isn’t surprising at all given the utter lack of interest from Ford, General Motors and Stellantis in selling passenger cars. The three models vying for the award are the Honda Civic Hybrid, Kia K4 and Toyota Camry. The first one made its return to the Civic lineup after a long hiatus, the second is a brand new car replacing the Forte, while the third has been completely redesigned.
Believe it or not, the venerable and best-selling Camry has never won the award, while the Civic is a three-time champion (2006, 2016, 2022). The winner will succeed the Toyota Prius/Prius Prime.
2025 North American Truck of the Year
This is where Detroit’s Big Three shine, obviously. Two midsize models, including the next-generation Toyota Tacoma and Ford Ranger, will take on a full-size truck, the Ram 1500, which received a solid update for 2025. The latter has already won the award three times (1994, 2013, 2019). Will its new Hurricane six-cylinder engine give it another win?
The 2024 winner, remember, was Ford’s Super Duty.
2025 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year
The third and final category pits three extremely different vehicles against each other. We’re talking about the Volkswagen ID. Buzz electric minivan, the Hyundai Santa Fe three-row midsize SUV and the Chevrolet Equinox EV electric compact crossover. Our money is on the last one, which is off to a hot start in Canada and the U.S.
Last year’s winner was the Kia EV9.
Evaluation criteria include outstanding innovation, design, performance, driver satisfaction and value. The 50 jurors, including The Car Guide’s Antoine Joubert, Gabriel Gélinas and Marc Lachapelle, will continue evaluating the finalist vehicles over the coming weeks and cast their ballots before the end of the year.
The winners will be announced on January 10 as part of the kickoff for the media days of the Detroit Auto Show.