2006 Wheels Car of the Year: what will win in a very strong field?

[2ndclasscitizen]

Just purchased the January 2007 issue of Wheels. In this issue, they have culled 13 cars from COTY contention.
The following cars are no longer in the running to win the Wheels Car of the Year: Dodge Caliber, Fiat Punto, Kia Magentis, Volkswagen Caddy Life, Subaru Tribeca, Ssangyong Kyron, Mercedes Benz R-Class, Hyundai Grandeur, Hyundai Accent, Jeep Commander, Peugeot 407 Coupe, Volkswagen Jetta and Mercedes Benz GL.

Has anyone actually seen one on the road yet?

[IBrake4Rainbows]

Yes - I nearly barfed. the sculpting is just Off.

[Volvoman]

Yes. And to top off the ugliness, it was gold! Some people have no taste at all.

[Volvoman]

I guess I wrong about the Jetta as well!!

[STREETFIRE]

The Tribeca is ugly. As is the SsangYong Kyron. I knew that the Grandeur, Magnetis and Kyron were gonna go.

[#3 Tasman Bloke]

[\QUOTE]The EA Falcon was rightly overlooked. [/QUOTE]
Your right about something there. My mum's EA Fairlane is falling apart FCOL!

[#3 Tasman Bloke]

I wasn't surprised about the Punto, quite surprised about the 407 coupe. In some ways, the 407 Coupe is a great lookin car, probably doesn't have enough power. The Punto, well, came last in the Cars Guide judging, and in August 2006 magazine, complained about a fuel leakage!

[#3 Tasman Bloke]

Last thing, lucky the Force 6, a new FPV model, didn't come out early enough! It would've had a clutch problem!

[fpv_gtho]

Hehe..hehe..hehe....your a noob.

Seriously, why make 3 posts in the space of 6 minutes?

[STREETFIRE]

Last thing, lucky the Force 6, a new FPV model, didn't come out early enough! It would've had a clutch problem!

No, it would've had a hot-shutdown problem.

If Wheels awards this year's COTY to the VE, they will really be awarding the Calais V, not the whole range.

Omega/Berlina V6 doesn't really deserve it. SS V definitely deserves the gong over the Golf GTI. The Calais shines the most, but some guys such as Chris Jurgen have a problem with the VE Calais being so good.

[motorsportnerd]

Last thing, lucky the Force 6, a new FPV model, didn't come out early enough! It would've had a clutch problem!

No need to worry about what sort of problem the Force 6 would have - it isn't eligible for Wheels Car of the Year on the basis that it is part of a wider range: the Ford Falcon BF Mk 2 range. Also, BF Mk 2 isn't eligible because it is not new enough as compared with its predecessor, the BF. Wheels doesn't allow facelifted models into the COTY testing.

but some guys such as Chris Jurgen have a problem with the VE Calais being so good.

Who's Chris Jurgen?

[adrenaline]

Is it me or are there fanboys around here...?

How many times has the VE already been recalled, boys?

[motorsportnerd]

Doesn't seem to be too much fanboyism in this thread.
The VE has been recalled three times IIRC. However, reliability and quality are not part of Wheels' judging criteria, so I doubt the recalls will affect the VE's chances of winning the award.
What has interested me in the past five months since the VE was released and in the past few since the Toyota Aurion was released is just how controversial both cars seem to be. Read the blogs at www.wheelsblog.com.au or at drive's website, and you'll see what I mean.
Holden fans seem to hate the Aurion. Aurion fans seem to hate the VE. Ford fans seem to hate both. The Mits 380 is overlooked by all. And then there's the hardcore who argue strongly that all the Australian built cars are heaps of s**t.
Maybe its the fact that the price of petrol has risen so dramatically. Maybe its an indicator that the Australian motoring scene is no longer dominated by the locally built cars. Maybe the long term quality issues of the Australian manufacturers are catching up in terms of a large number of very negative opinions and a wide dislike of the Aussie built cars. Maybe its that there is so many well built, well priced, reliable cars in the sub $40K area that it is not necessary or even desirable to buy an Australian built Ford/Holden/Mits/Toyota.

An example of the dislike of the Aussie built cars can be seen in some of the threads I've seen on the VE. One denigrated into a "If you like Holdens (or Fords) you must be an uneducated bogan" versus the equally well informed "If you like Euro/Japanese cars you must be a snob with no common-sense". Interesting - I own a Ford and I have a degree - how does that make me an uneducated bogan? Alternatively, I like Euro/Japanese cars (particularly Mazdas), so does that make me a snob?
The various blogs and forums on the Australian motoring scene show one thing clearly. The Commodore VE (and for that matter the Falcon, Aurion and 380) has a lot of detractors - and not just from opposing tribal fences, but also from those who hate Aussie cars full stop.
This outpouring of dislike for the Aussie cars is now stronger in the past, and just one reason why I'm more keenly awaiting the award than in past years. Just waiting for the reaction from VE and Aurion supporters if, for example, the Mercedes S-Class or Mazda CX-7 win. If the Aurion wins, it'll be attacked by VE supporters and Euro/Japanese supporters. If the VE wins it will be attacked by Aurion supporters and Euro/Japanese supporters.
This one is going to be interesting. And its the Wheels and Drive blogs which will have most of the discussion about the winner.
Of course, here at ultimatecarpage, we're all far more objective about the winning car.

[motorsportnerd]

[\QUOTE]The EA Falcon was rightly overlooked.
Your right about something there. My mum's EA Fairlane is falling apart FCOL!

I notice you agree on the EA, but don't mention the VN. Very few of them left on the roads - most have long since oversteered off the road into a tree or lamp post.
Also, while the EAs had heaps of quality problems when new, fact is that they are now a 19-year car, so I'm not surprised that's its falling apart. You can't judge the quality of a 19-year old car by the standards applied to new cars.

[fpv_gtho]

Doesn't seem to be too much fanboyism in this thread.
The VE has been recalled three times IIRC. However, reliability and quality are not part of Wheels' judging criteria, so I doubt the recalls will affect the VE's chances of winning the award.
What has interested me in the past five months since the VE was released and in the past few since the Toyota Aurion was released is just how controversial both cars seem to be. Read the blogs at www.wheelsblog.com.au or at drive's website, and you'll see what I mean.
Holden fans seem to hate the Aurion. Aurion fans seem to hate the VE. Ford fans seem to hate both. The Mits 380 is overlooked by all. And then there's the hardcore who argue strongly that all the Australian built cars are heaps of s**t.
Maybe its the fact that the price of petrol has risen so dramatically. Maybe its an indicator that the Australian motoring scene is no longer dominated by the locally built cars. Maybe the long term quality issues of the Australian manufacturers are catching up in terms of a large number of very negative opinions and a wide dislike of the Aussie built cars. Maybe its that there is so many well built, well priced, reliable cars in the sub $40K area that it is not necessary or even desirable to buy an Australian built Ford/Holden/Mits/Toyota.

An example of the dislike of the Aussie built cars can be seen in some of the threads I've seen on the VE. One denigrated into a "If you like Holdens (or Fords) you must be an uneducated bogan" versus the equally well informed "If you like Euro/Japanese cars you must be a snob with no common-sense". Interesting - I own a Ford and I have a degree - how does that make me an uneducated bogan? Alternatively, I like Euro/Japanese cars (particularly Mazdas), so does that make me a snob?
The various blogs and forums on the Australian motoring scene show one thing clearly. The Commodore VE (and for that matter the Falcon, Aurion and 380) has a lot of detractors - and not just from opposing tribal fences, but also from those who hate Aussie cars full stop.
This outpouring of dislike for the Aussie cars is now stronger in the past, and just one reason why I'm more keenly awaiting the award than in past years. Just waiting for the reaction from VE and Aurion supporters if, for example, the Mercedes S-Class or Mazda CX-7 win. If the Aurion wins, it'll be attacked by VE supporters and Euro/Japanese supporters. If the VE wins it will be attacked by Aurion supporters and Euro/Japanese supporters.
This one is going to be interesting. And its the Wheels and Drive blogs which will have most of the discussion about the winner.
Of course, here at ultimatecarpage, we're all far more objective about the winning car.

I think one other alternative is Holden/RWD fans perhaps feel more threatened than ever by Toyota with the Aurion. Despite the claims of it not being a true large car (something i dont really get, who cars about the extra few mm of room. Not going to make a difference in the scheme of things) and also simply a V6 Camry, Toyota have always appealed more to the people looking for an appliance rather than a vehicle, and have long been criticised for only offering a product to meet that demand. Now though they should have a competitive product and will probably leave Holden's lower end models very vulnerable.

Of course nobody would admit it to being that way.