That the Audi A4 won the Car of the Year Award in the 2016 What Car? Awards is nothing out of the ordinary, but some may be surprised that the VW Group received so much recognition in the awards, scooping a total of eight of the “best buy” wins.
Audi, along with Porsche, SEAT and, of course, Volkswagen, is a marque of the VW Group – amongst other well-known and luxurious brands – and many people in the automotive industry were shocked to see so many of these VW Group marques win prestigious awards in this year’s What Car? Awards.
The NOx and CO2 emissions scandal of last year rocked the automotive world and it is said to have cost the VW Group £30billion. After investigations by the US Environmental Protection Agency, some of Volkswagen’s diesel vehicles were found to have defeat device software installed, which can cheat emissions tests.
Audi A4 wins What Car? Car of the Year
The VW Group vehicles tested by What Cars? team of experts were the recertified petrol, diesel and hybrid models that have been produced within the last few months in accordance with emission regulations. All of the vehicles that are tested by What Car? Undergo a rigorous evaluation against What Car?’s set of 16 criteria, including repeated testing, “real-world” economical testing, and a costs evaluation.
Jim Holder, editorial director of What Car?, commented: “Regardless of the scandal, the VW Group still builds cars that rank among the very best on the road and, tested against our criteria covering all of the rational reasons that consumers choose one car over another, the results are clear to see.”
