Car of the Year is Hyundai Elantra

Car of the Year is Hyundai Elantra

The Hyundai Elantra was named 2012 North American Car of the Year on Monday at the 2012 North American Auto Show in Detroit.

The Elantra is manufactured by Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama located in Montgomery.

A jury of 50 independent North American automotive journalists evaluated each of the new cars introduced last year and chose the 2012 Hyundai Elantra as the winner.

The jurors considered more than 50 new vehicles, before selecting the top three cars and top three trucks. The Volkswagen Passat and Ford Focus were the other car finalists.

This is the 19th year of the awards, which were inspired by the prestigious European "Car of the Year." The jury is administered by an organizing committee and funded exclusively with dues paid by the jurors.

Jurors judge the cars on a number of factors including innovation, impact on the industry, design, safety, handling, driver satisfaction and value for the dollar.

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