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Car of the Year?

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So, what are the odds that the Model S will be nominated/win the Motor Trend CoTY award? Just based on featured and innovations, I think most of us here would say it's a no brainer, but I know some of that award is tied to advertising dollars that manufacturers spend with the magazine, and it doesn't look like Tesla is going to spend much in this area.

What other car has the looks, performance, storage, technology/gadgets, green factor and of course the low cost of ownership?
 
I think the odds are very high! If the Chevy Volt can win, the Model S should crush the competition.

According to Wikipedia:
To be eligible for the award, a car must be an "all-new" or "substantially upgraded" vehicle that has been on sale within 12 months from the previous November, vehicles that have been on sale for over five years are ineligible for the award). In recent years, each contender is ranked in the following three areas: superiority, significance, and value. It is not a comparison test.

Looking for articles detailing new 2013 models I came across the following:
2013 Future Cars - Consumer Guide Automotive

Nothing on this list that can compete with the Model S, IMO, of course the Model S is not on this list so the list itself must not be comprehensive.
 
I'd say it's a strong bet, but I'm of course biased. I guess the karma could be considered to be higher profile and have bigger buzz. I think that was part of it with the volt. Not the best car IMO, but the most talked about.
 
I suspect that the motor journalists are not really considering the model s yet since no one has been allowed to drive it and in their opinion it is not rally on sale yet since youo cannot order all the options and so on. so I suspect it would be eligible net year and then it might very well win on all it's merites. even if the karma is still missing its delivery targets the journalists were all invited to Finland to test it. So they have driven it a little nit. but I suspect even then that it would not make the list either. usually, at least in Europe, the journalists have to test he cars quite thurougly before they can vote on it.
 
Yes! Tesla Model S is a 2013 model and must be on sale by November 2012 to qualify for MT car of the year.

2012. My guide made it clear that cars will be dated in the year they are built in. Model years will not be the indicator of car features according to him, version numbers will (think how people say Roadster 1.5, 2.0, 2.5 etc). So a car made December 31st, 2012 should be a 2012.
 
I personally believe that if all goes well with the S release and it gets rave reviews, it could make the cover of Time. This car is a big thing IMO.

COTY, that's a tough one considering Tesla is fighting against the status quo. Depends on what kinda feeling Motor Trend gets from its readers...will they accept an EV on the cover? There's a lot of obnoxious people out there who are, literally, 'racist' towards EVs.
 
,,,COTY, that's a tough one considering Tesla is fighting against the status quo. Depends on what kinda feeling Motor Trend gets from its readers...will they accept an EV on the cover? .....

Prizes that that are bought and paid for.

Considering Tesla does not but 1M worth of ad space every year of any magazine, they will only get in on "10 best" internet listings.
 
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There's a long time from now until November 2012. By then, if all goes well, thousands of Model S's will have shipped. The mood of the car magazine buyers will have to be judged at that time. Looking at it now, I really can't imagine.
 
Well, I suppose we all think that the Tesla Roadster should've *already* won Car Of The Year, so we shouldn't set ourselves up for disappointment if / when the Nissan LEAF or Ford Focus Electric nabs it instead.
Relatively limited availability higher-priced nominees have two strikes against them from the get-go.

--Ardie
How could the red Model S *not* win?