[shragon]

April 13, 2006 - For Immediate Release

At a press conference presented by the Midway Group and hosted by the New York International Auto Show at the Jacob Javitz Centre in Manhattan, New York, the BMW 3-Series was declared the 2006 World Car of the Year.

The BMW 3-Series was chosen from an initial entry list of twenty-seven (27) candidates nominated by the World Car jurors.

In selecting the winner a jury of 46 international automotive journalists considered a variety of parameters; then individually reviewed, evaluated, and voted on the World Car of the Year entrants by secret ballot. The international accounting firm KPMG tabulated the ballots to first determine the finalists, and finally the winner.

Jurors observed that there has been considerable proliferation of models from BMW, from entry-level 1-Series hatchbacks to 500 hp M-Series supercars, but the heart of the BMW mystique lies, as it has for decades, with the 3-Series: sound, sensible and sporty sedans, coupes, convertibles and wagons.

Jurors felt that tradeoffs between performance and practicality; between style and seriousness are more perfectly balanced with the 3-Series than is the case with any other make. Variants include all-wheel drive models for difficult winters, ultra-high performance M models, and highly efficient four- and six-cylinder diesels.

Without changes from their basic specifications, the BMW 3 Series does the job as though specifically designed for local conditions.

The top three contenders for the second annual World Car of the Year in addition to the BMW 3-Series were the Mazda MX-5 and the Porsche Cayman S.

“We are delighted to receive this recognition of the 3 Series,” said Tom Purves, Chairman and CEO of BMW of North America. “It is often more difficult to replace an acknowledged segment leader than to introduce a new car. Based on awards like this and the reaction by customers, the fifth generation 3 Series is a worthy successor”.

Today’s world is truly a global village – especially within the automotive industry. National borders are effectively non-existent in terms of where vehicles and their components are designed, engineered, developed, built, and sold. The World Car of the Year Awards, of which the Audi A6 was the inaugural winner in 2005, reflect the truly global nature of the 21st-century automotive business and, at the same time, recognizes and rewards automotive excellence on a global scale.

Announcing the annual World Car of the Year awards at the New York show is a fitting finale to the auto show season that begins each fall with either the Paris or Frankfurt motor shows. Next, it’s on to Tokyo in alternating years. The Detroit show takes centre stage in January while Geneva claims the spotlight in March. Finally, in April, the season reaches its exciting climax at the New York International Auto Show.

Three additional specialty awards were handed out during the same press conference. The Porsche Cayman S was declared World Performance Car; the Honda Civic Hybrid won the honours for World Green Car; while the Citroen C4 earned the World Car Design of the Year award for 2006.

Graham Johnson, co-chair of the World Car of the Year steering committee, announced the addition of the new specialty awards last October. “Performance, design, and environmental responsibility are all key elements in the success of a vehicle on a global scale,” he said, “so we believe it is appropriate that we recognize exceptional achievement in those specific areas with their own awards.”

A panel of international experts in each of the environmental and design fields was chosen to assist the jurors by developing the short lists of finalists from the array of eligible candidates in each of those categories. However, the 46 member jury themselves determined the top three finalists in the World Performance Car category.

The World Car of the Year Awards program is initiated by, organized by, and conducted by, automotive journalists from around the globe. A non-profit association guided by a steering committee of journalists from Asia, Europe, and North America administers the awards program. WCOTY is intended to complement, not compete with, existing COTY awards by raising consumer awareness of regional Car of the Year award programs as well as the World Car of the Year.

Photos of all winners, as well as the press conference, are available for downloading by visiting the World Car web site at www.wcoty.com. Questions? E-mail or call Beth Xenarios, Executive Manager, at beth@wcoty.com, 1-905-342-2220.

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About The Midway Group

MIDWAY-GROUP is a member of the Hankey Group of Companies, a global automotive solutions firm specializing in vehicle acquisition and supply, comprehensive transportation, insurance underwriting and market data services utilized by automobile manufacturers, marketing, training, advertising, engineering, media services and certified testing agencies. www.midway-group.com

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About the New York International Auto Show

"Proudly serving the needs of our clients since 1953". Kicking off the springtime selling season, the 2006 New York International Auto Show will feature an impressive collection of cutting-edge design and remarkable innovation. More than four floors of displays from the world’s automakers will feature the newest vehicles and futuristic concept cars. More than 1,000 cars and trucks will be on display at the Javits Center, filling 846,000 square feet of exhibit space. In addition, dozens of World and North American vehicle debuts are expected at the Show. NYIAS is owned and produced by the Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association.

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[wyrm11]

Thanks Shragon!

That sounds really great. e90 owners have got to be proud. "World Car of the Year"...sounds AWESOME.

[KL2DC]

Beat that Lexus IS !! I guess I made the right choice

[Robin_NL]

I really thought the Hyundai Sonata SRX would win

[magamaga]

A W E S O M E.


WE HAVE THE BEST CAR IN THE WORLD!

[magamaga]

I don't see the Lexus, Infiniti nor Nissan 350 anywhere near the BMW 3!

That's gotta hurt!
--------------
Quote:

The top three contenders for the second annual World Car of the Year in addition to the BMW 3-Series were the Mazda MX-5 and the Porsche Cayman S.

[Robin_NL]

Thanx I don't need my glasses anymore

[Hunter399]

Why am I not surprised.....

[shragon]

Originally Posted by Robin Hood

Thanx I don't need my glasses anymore

lol

[timzerofive]

Alright, everyone gets a cookie. Should we make a sticker or sumthn?

[vladinecko]

good, now when someone asks me what kind of car i drive i can confidently reply "Gosh! I drive the World Car of the Year! IDIOT!!!"

[ase2dais]

Originally Posted by txusa03

This means bad news...you will see more e90 on the road now....

but on the good side
you can have an E90 Meet Rallye without even trying to organize one!
YEAH!

[timzerofive]

Originally Posted by vladinecko

good, now when someone asks me what kind of car i drive i can confidently reply "Gosh! I drive the World Car of the Year! IDIOT!!!"

Our cars has nunchuck skills, bowhunting skills, computer hacking skills

[RichReg]

Originally Posted by timzerofive

Our cars has nunchuck skills, bowhunting skills, computer hacking skills

All owners of E90s should be able to have 1 cloned version
of the girl in your post at their disposal at all times.

[ward]

can we get stickers that say

"official E90post.com member BEST CAR IN THE WORLD"

[puck724]

Originally Posted by BellasBmw

Thats friggin sweeet!! Now i can tell all my friends.. "neener neener my car was world car of the year..!"

lol

...thats cool to hear though!

[roppongicorolla]

Ok, another award for the 3. So BMW can sit back next year hold off bringing out a new engine variant, because they already have "the World Car of the Year".

Anyone know what some of the past winners were?

[triton.]

This is the second year. First Years winner was the Audi A6

[RGRAY]

Originally Posted by JSpira

BMW 3 SERIES DECLARED 2006 "WORLD CAR OF THE YEAR"
04/13/2006

I declared that after my test drive.

[beauderek]

I knew there was something about this car that I liked.

[ad2005]

Way to go BMW!!!!

[e90rocks]

Yipee. Too bad I never heard of this award before. Here's a project for someone with a lot of time on their hands: Make a spreadsheet with all of the Car of the Year awards this year and the top 3 placers.