General Motors’ Cadillac ATS, a luxury sports sedan, won the North American Car of the Year award while Chrysler Group LLC’s Ram 1500 won the truck award, providing a sweep for automakers bailed out in 2009 U.S.-financed bankruptcies.
The ATS beat out the Ford Fusion and the revamped Honda Accord, both midsize sedans, the Automotive Press Association announced Monday at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Last year, Hyundai’s Elantra compact sedan topped Ford’s Focus and Volkswagen’s Passat.
The Ram 1500, a large pickup that can get 25 miles per gallon on the highway, was named truck/utility of the year, at the Detroit auto show. The Ram won over Ford’s C-Max hybrid, which Ford categorizes as a car, and Mazda’s CX-5 crossover sport-utility vehicle. Last year, the Range Rover Evoque, part of Tata Motors Ltd.’s Land Rover brand, won the honor.
The finalists reflect automakers’ effort to increase fuel efficiency to help meet new federal standards. The truck/utility award was formerly known as the truck of the year award. The move reflected the increasing number of car-based crossover vehicles, which combine attributes of cars and trucks.
Each car finalist gets at least 32 mpg and the truck/utility finalists are small SUVs and a pickup with a V-6 engine. The U.S. wants automakers to double the average fuel economy of passenger vehicles sold in the U.S. to 54.5 mpg by 2025.
U.S.-based automakers have won the car award 11 times among the 20 times it has been awarded and have received the truck award on 13 occasions. GM’s Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid and Ford’s Explorer SUV won the awards in 2011. Chrysler is majority owned by Fiat SpA.