For the third consecutive year, Grupo Premia, made up of specialized journalists from the automotive industry, chose the
Car of the Year 2023
in Argentina
and the award went to the Ford Maverick.
The compact pickup that comes from Mexico managed to prevail over the Fiat Pulse, which finished in second place, and the new Citroën C3, which completed the podium.
In this way, the Ford Maverick became the first model manufactured
outside the country
to win the award, taking into account that the Volkswagen Taos and the Peugeot 208 were the winners of the 2022 and 2021 editions respectively.
Depending on the version, the Maverick can carry up to 670 kilos.
How to choose the best car in the country
The vehicles that competed for the most important award in the national industry, which in this edition bore the name
Carlos Figueras
(in recognition of the journalist who died in May 2022), were those that debuted in the local market between January 1 and on December 31, 2022.
The
jury
is made up of Matías Antico (TN Autos), Augusto Brugo Marcó (Parabrisas Magazine), Gabriel Silveira (Clarín), Martín Simacourbe (Argentina Autoweb), Eduardo Smok (Auto al Día), Gabriel Tomich (La Nación) and Guido Tonelli (Autotest Magazine).
The voting system gives each of the jurors 25 points to distribute among the seven candidates, with the only requirement of not scoring more than 10 points to any of these.
The Maverick managed to prevail over the Fiat Pulse, which finished second, and the Citroën C3, which closed the podium.
In this way, in the final vote Ford Maverick was at the top with 38 points, followed by Fiat Pulse (29 points), Citroën C3 (26 points), Jeep Commander (19 points), Mercedes-Benz C-Class (16 points ), Audi RS e-tron GT (13 points) and Toyota GR 86 (11 points).
Other models that were in the race but did not reach the final stage were the BMW 2 Series Coupé, DS 4, FAW Actis, the Great Wall Poer, Hyundai Creta, Hyundai Staria, Kia Carnival, Kia Sorento, Lexus LX, Lexus NX, Mercedes-Benz S-Class and Subaru Outback.
Maverick, the winner
Animator of an incipient category, the compact pickup began to be marketed in our country at the beginning of 2022. A direct rival of the Fiat Toro, the Maverick is built on the same platform that the brand uses for the Bronco Sport SUV, also produced in Mexico.
Although it belongs to the "compact" segment, it is not a particularly small vehicle.
It only comes with a double cabin body and measures
5 meters long
, 1.9 wide, 3 wheelbase and 1.74 high.
Currently, the range is made up of two versions equipped with the 2.0-liter turbocharged gasoline engine, which delivers a power of
258 horsepower
and is associated with an 8-speed automatic gearbox and simple and all-wheel drive systems.
Soon the range will add a hybrid version.
Soon, the family will be enlarged with the arrival of a
hybrid
variant powered by a 162-horsepower 2.5-liter gasoline engine, a 1.1 kWh battery, and a 126-horsepower electric motor that, together, will deliver a total power of 191 horsepower.
As an electrified model, this new Maverick Hybrid will have some benefits that are implemented to encourage the use of this technology that reduces fuel consumption.
One of those "privileges" is
not to pay patent
in several cities of the country or have some discount in the payment of that tax.
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