1968 -75 Corvette Original Alarm Horn on 2040-parts.com

Audi A3 is the 2014 World Car of the Year

The Audi A3 (pictured) is the 2014 World Car of the Year The New York Auto Show is the place where the World Car of the Year winner is announced, so with the show now underway comes the news that it’s the Audi A3 that’s grabbed the gong for the best car in the world in 2014. It’s the second time Audi has won the award – the Audi A6 won in 2005 – and probably holds up a mirror to the changing face of the world’s car landscape; more compact, ‘Premium’ cars are now the most favoured buy. But really, the Audi A3 isn’t just a single car.

Car Design News Contest

As one judge, Geert Jan Schellekens, Principal Automotive and Industrial Designer at SABIC Innovative Plastics, said; "From several hundred entries to 20 finalists in a day's time - what could have turned out to be a cumbersome process, if not a bureaucratic nightmare, actually became an intensive yet fun session with many intriguing and interesting interpretations of the contest brief - fuelling some lively discussions!" Another strong impression from judges was also of the variety of design entry and the effort that had been put into them, as Dale Harrow said: "I'm very impressed with the standard, and particularly with the diversity of entries to the contest". Derek Buckmaster,Global Market Director, Body Panels & Glazing for SABIC Innovative Plastics, said: "I was surprised by the depth of thought which the entrants had put into their designs to meet the diverse needs of the three 'milenniumites' described in the design brief. The designs displayed numerous approaches to meeting the environmentally-friendly and light-weight goals." All designs were considered relative to the Assessment Criteria a critically important part of the contest, created to ensure as much fairness in the process as possible and detailed in the Contest part of Car Design News.

Opel/Vauxhall Adam

The Opel/Vauxhall Adam is GM Europe's entry into the premium sub-compact hatchback segment. Following the success of the Citroen DS3, Mini, Audi A1, Fiat 500 et al. it aims to offer an extensively customizable A-segment car with the appeal (and subsequent profitability) of a premium product.