The Volkswagen Group cleaned up at the prestigious What Car? Car of the Year Awards 2016, despite being engulfed by the diesel emissions scandal.
Top prize went to the Audi A4 3.0 TDI 218 Sport, while the Group (which consists of VW, Audi, SEAT, ŠKODA, Bentley and Bugatti) was victorious in nine of the 19 categories. Audi has now won the coveted title three times – more than any other manufacturer.
The only prize for a British car maker went to the Land Rover Discovery Sport in the Large SUV category.
What Car? readers also voted for the upcoming Alfa Romeo Giulia as the car they were most looking forward to in 2016.
“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,” said What Car?’s Jim Holder.
“All VW Group brands face a huge journey in rebuilding public confidence in their products. We acknowledge that and accept that some car buyers will simply look to our runner-up recommendations as a result. Car buyers will always have varying priorities, and we will always be there to help make their journey as easy and fruitful as possible.”