Bloomberg-UTV Autocar Awards 2012

The prestigious Bloomberg-UTV Autocar Awards 2012 have been declared and following is the list of winners-

Car of the year – Suzuki Swift

The Swift won Car of the Year in 2005. And it wins it yet again this time. Though the new Swift looks exactly like the old model, this car is a grounds-up new generation of the Swift. This model is based on an all-new platform and is now both longer and wider. The Swift’s interior styling, which is heavily borrowed from its Kizashi sibling, is now plusher.

The car is now sportier to drive and the 1.2 K-series petrol gets variable valve timing (VVT) to bump up power to 86bhp. The 74bhp 1.3 diesel Multi-jet engine remains largely unchanged but the carmaker’s effort to make the cabin a quieter place is evident. Maruti Suzuki has taken an already good car and made it even better by ironing out the flaws in the older car. Despite stiff competition this year from among nearly all the world’s majors, Maruti Suzuki’s new Swift shows the competition a clean pair of heels to pick up the prestigious award of the Bloomberg-UTV Autocar Car of the Year 2012.

Bike of the Year – Honda CBR250R

The Honda CBR250R came like a breath of fresh air for Indian motorcycle enthusiasts long stuck between underpowered city commuters and horrendously expensive imported superbikes. Here was a motorcycle that offered great styling, zippy performance, street-friendly handling with a price tag that did not need you to mortgage your house. The CBR250R has all the big bike visual cues with its VFR 1200 inspired headlamp and CBR1000RR fairing. It ticks all the right boxes in the design and styling department. For its combination of style, performance, streetfriendly handling as well as advanced technology at a decent price, the Honda CBR250R is the Bike of the Year.

Winners for other categories are-

Best Styling & Design – Hyundai Verna

Best Value for Money – Mahindra XUV500

Best Variant of the Year – Chevrolet Beat Diesel

Best Driver's car – Ford Fiesta

Manufacturer of the Year – Toyota

Technology and Innovation award –  Audi A8

Sub-compact car of the Year – Honda Brio

Best Compact car of the Year – Maruti Suzuki Swift

Best Saloon car of the Year –  Skoda Rapid

Best Executive Saloon of the Year – VW Jetta

Luxury Saloon of the Year – Audi A6

SUV of the Year – Mahindra XUV500

Luxury SUV of the Year – BMW X3

Best Automobile Ad of the Year – Volkswagen Jetta 'Flyboy'

Premium Bike of the Year – Kawasaki Ninja 650R

Import Bike of the Year – BMW K 1600 GTL

Green Car Award – VW Passat for BlueMotion technology

Man of the Year – Pawan Goenka

Viewer's choice award - CAR – Mahindra XUV500

Viewer's choice award - BIKE – Honda CBR250R