Winners Announced at Chicago Auto Show – Automotive Journalist of the Year Named

The Internet Car and Truck of the Year website, an online venue not dependent on OEM advertising, held its inaugural Internet Pros and Average Joes vote for their favorite new cars.

The Internet Pros are comprised of a select team of 12 online writers from some of the leading automotive Internet sites, while the Average Joes consisted of more than 50,000 votes from the motoring public.

The winners, announced from the Chicago Auto Show today, are:
Internet Pros:
Car of the Year: 2010 Mazda3
Truck of the Year: 2010 Chevrolet Equinox

Average Joes:
Car of the Year: 2010 Chevrolet Camaro
Truck of the Year: 2010 Chevrolet Equinox

Automotive Analyst Lauren Fix, one of the 12-member jury for the Internet Pros, had this to say about the Mazda3: “It’s just the right size and has great performance. It comes standard with all the available bells and whistles and it’s really edgy looking. I just wanted to take it to the track because it handled tightly, has great throttle response, and it’s a blast to drive.”

Another juror, Dan Roth from Autoblog.com, said he voted for the Chevrolet Equinox because “”…it’s a clear signal of General Motors newfound realization that it not only needs great products, it needs the *right* great products. Cars like the Camaro, Cadillac CTS-V, and of course the Corvette – we all expect those to be great, and they are. Greatness in a niche is fine, but what’s really going to breathe new life into the stumbling behemoth are the bread-and-butter cars.”

So while the Internet Pros and Average Joes agree on the Truck of the Year they have very differing opinions when it comes to their favorite car. The Pros opted for practicality while the Joes chose power. However, both demonstrated their respect for American Sheet metal with the Equinox.

Between the semi-finals and finals rounds, more than 50,000 votes were cast for the Consumer Internet Car and Truck of the Year. Percent of males vs. females was 79 to 21 percent. Forty-seven percent of the voters were between the ages of 40-55.

College graduates made up 39 percent of the voters, with 30 percent having a graduate degree. Thirty percent of voters reported household income between $100-$149,000. The next largest group at 20 percent was $80,000 to $99,999.

Also announced was the selection of John Neff as Internet Automotive Journalist of the Year. Neff, editor-in-chief of Autoblog.com, was selected for his talented stewardship of the Internet’s largest automotive news site and his advocacy for Internet automotive journalists.

The Internet Car and Truck of the Year awards were created by Keith Griffin, the Guide to Used Cars for About.com, and the Hartford (CT) Auto Examiner for Examiner.com, as well as a print automotive journalist and vice president of the New England Motor Press Association.

For more information on Internet Car and Truck of the Year, email Keith Griffin at
keith@internetcarandtruckoftheyear.com or call (860) 292-0618.

Just hours remain before the four winners of the inaugural Internet Car and Truck of the Year awards are announced. Care to hazard a guess who the winners will be?

The Internet Car of the Year finalists are:

• Mazda Mazda3
• Ford Fusion Hybrid
• Shelby GT500

The Consumer Internet Car of the Year finalists are:

• The Chevy Camaro
• Ford Shelby GT500
• The Taurus SHO

The Internet Truck of the Year finalists are:

• Chevy Equinox
• Ford Raptor
• Volvo XC60

The Consumer Internet Truck of the Year finalists are:

• Chevy Equinox
• Ford Raptor
• Audi Q7 TDI

Comment below on who you think the winners will be. The awards will be announced on Feb. 10 at 4 p.m., Central Standard Time, at the Chicago Auto Show.

The jury has spoken. The winners of the inaugural Internet Car and Truck of the Year Automotive Writing Contest have been announced. The winners include writers from United States and Canadian websites and were selected by a three-member jury. All winning entries can be found at the Internet Car & Truck of the Year website.

The Automotive Internet Journalist of the Year has also been selected but that award will be announced at the Chicago Auto Show on Wednesday, Feb. 10 at 4 p.m. on the Grand Concourse Media Stage during the presentation of the Internet Car and Truck of the Year.

Best Review Written for the Internet
The winner of “Best Review Written for the Internet” goes to Jeff Glucker, co-owner and editor of Hooniverse.com. His review of the Audi R8 “really captured the heart and soul of the car,” said one judge. As Glucker himself pointed out in the review, “[The R8] is a wonderful mash-up of form and function – style and substance – gracefulness and go-fast goodness.”

Best Feature Written for the Internet
The winner of “Best Feature Written for the Internet” goes to Lyndon Conrad Bell, editor-in-chief of On Wheels Media, for his feature “A fast road to manhood” that was published on Examiner.com, where Bell is the San Francisco sports car examiner. His story tells of the bonding between him and his son Julian at 6 a.m. while testing cars and how driving cars can be a metaphor for life.

Best Single Blog Written for the Internet
The winner of “Best Single Blog” Written for the Internet goes to Craig Hover, senior editor of the Automobile Red Book, and writer for other outlets, for his blog entry on the most mundane of topics: changing a flat tire. Titled, “The big flat. My apologies to Raymond Chandler,” the blog turns the changing of a flat tire into something out of a classic murder mystery.

Best Series of Blog Entries
An international flair is added with the selection of Jil McIntosh for “Best Series of Blog Entries.” As one judge said, “Jill has the voice of an educated neighbor who’s more than happy to tell you like it is.” McIntosh is a freelance writer and a member of the Automobile Journalists of Canada. Her regular outlets include new-car reviews and special-interest articles for The Toronto Star (Wheels section); new-car reviews and news reports for Canadian Driver, where she is also the assistant editor; and other outlets.
McIntosh submitted five blog entries for submission.