Honest John to host their annual awards ceremony to award the best of the best.

• Final 70 contenders announced for Honest John Awards 2017, but which ones will get to wear the hat?
• Shortlist based on the cars that are most-popular with HonestJohn.co.uk's two million readers
• Lab-inspired ceremony to take place in London, with winners announced on 18 May 

There was chemistry, there was friction and there were some quite strong reactions, but the team at www.HonestJohn.co.uk has finally crunched the numbers to uncover the shortlist for the forthcoming Honest John Awards 2017, which will be handed out in London on 18 May.

This year, the team has applied its tried and tested formulae to determine which models are the best options for consumers, based on their popularity with HonestJohn.co.uk‘s two million readers. There are now 70 names in the melting pot, but which ones will be victorious?

THE MOTORING WORLD BLOG CHOICES

As the site’s consumer-led approach to testing, experimenting and concocting their shortlists has been a truly scientific affair, this year’s awards will include a special behind-the-scenes glimpse of the HJ Labs.

Here – in alphabetical order - are the contenders for each category – but which have the probability of winning an award?

City Car

Fiat 500

Hyundai i10

Skoda Citigo

Suzuki Ignis

Volkswagen Up

Small Hatchback

Ford Fiesta

Honda Jazz

Skoda Fabia

Suzuki Baleno

Toyota Yaris

Small Family Car

Audi A3 Sportback

Citroen C4 Cactus

Ford Focus

Mazda 3

Volkswagen Golf

Large Family Car

DS 5

Ford Mondeo

Mazda 6

Skoda Superb

Volkswagen Passat

Compact Premium

Audi A4

BMW 3 Series

Jaguar XE

Mercedes-Benz GLC

Mercedes-Benz C-Class

Large Premium

Audi A6

BMW 5 Series

Jaguar F-Pace

Jaguar XF

Mercedes-Benz E-Class

MPV

BMW 2 Series Active Tourer

Citroen C4 Grand Picasso

Ford B-MAX

Ford C-MAX

Volkswagen Golf SV

Small Crossover

Dacia Duster

Honda HR-V

Mazda CX-3

Peugeot 2008

Renault Captur

Crossover

Hyundai Tucson

Kia Sportage

Nissan Qashqai

SEAT Ateca

Suzuki Vitara

SUV

BMW X5

Ford Edge

Kia Sorento

Land Rover Discovery Sport

Volvo XC90

Performance Car

Audi RS3

Ford Focus RS

Honda Civic Type R

Porsche 718 Boxster

Toyota GT86

Volkswagen Golf R

Convertible

Fiat 124 Spider

Ford Mustang

Mazda MX-5

Mercedes-Benz SLC

Mitsuoka Roadster

Luxury Car

Audi A7 Sportback

Audi A8

BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe

Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Tesla Model S

Estate

BMW 3-Series Touring

Honda Civic Tourer

Skoda Octavia Estate

SEAT Leon ST

Volvo V90

On the evening of the awards, HonestJohn.co.uk will also announce its overall Car of the Year 2017, as well as special awards for Highly Rated Car and its Real MPG champion, which is arguably the most scientific award of the lot.

Keep an eye out for the outcome, with the results going live here at 10.00pm on Thursday 18 May. 

HONEST JOHN AWARDS - Ford takes a triple win at the ceremony held in London this year.

Ford claimed three accolades at the 2016 HonestJohn.co.ukreader awards. The UK’s best-selling car, the Ford Fiesta, won Most Popular Small Hatchback; the dynamic Ford S-MAX collected Most Popular MPV and the iconic Ford Mustang declared the Most Popular Convertible.

Most Popular Small Hatchback

Ford sells a new Fiesta in the UK every 60 seconds* and at the end of April 2016, it had topped the UK car sales leader board for 90 consecutive months. Fiesta is available from £10,345 and offers customers a stylish, practical, well-equipped and fun-to-drive supermini.

Dan Harrison, editor of honestjohn.co.uk, said: “As an all-rounder the Ford Fiesta is a hard one to beat, proving equally at home on the motorway as it is around town. Our users also tell us they're impressed by the Fiesta's turbocharged EcoBoost engines, which deliver eager performance.”

Most Popular MPV

The stylish and sporty Ford S-MAX has enjoyed a remarkable run of sales success in Britain, with over 87,000 UK registrations since its 2006 debut. Ford’s latest version of this trend-setting, seven-seat, sports activity vehicle offers a range of more than 20 new technologies, including global debuts for Glare-Free Highbeam,Intelligent Speed Limiter and Ford Adaptive Steering. For the first time, the new S-MAX is also available with Ford’s Intelligent All-Wheel-Drive (iAWD) system.

Most Popular Convertible

The Ford Mustang – introduced in the U.S. more than 50 years ago – has excited fans across the globe, but has never been available to order with right-hand drive, until now. Almost 4,000 customers have placed and order for a RHD Mustang in just 10 months.

Latest updates to Mustang include the addition of SYNC 3 with 8in colour touchscreen and a new array of colours including White Platinum, Grabber Blue and Lightning Blue.

Dan Harrison, editor of honestjohn.co.uk, said: “The Ford Mustang may be a truly iconic model, yet it has remained elusive for British drivers. So Ford's decision to finally officially sell it here was met with huge interest and enthusiasm. It came as no surprise to us that our audience were keen to read about the new Mustang. Given its affordable price tag, it represents a lot of car for the money, yet is always guaranteed to get attention.”

The honestjohn.co.uk awards are uniquely judged by their website users. The main awards recognise and reward the cars and vans that HonestJohn users search for most on the site. This data comes from the number of page views each review has had over the previous 12 months from April 2015 to April 2016. The site gets around 3 million visits every month with the majority of these users viewing car reviews.

HONEST JOHN AWARDS - Ford takes a triple at the 2015 ceremony, oh yes, and Car of the Year on top.

• Ford Mondeo declared Car Of The Year and Most Popular Large Family Car at 2015 Honest John awards
• Ford Transit Custom awarded Most Popular Van
• Ford Fiesta wins Most Popular Small Hatchback

Ford claimed four key accolades at this year’s Honest John Awards, with the all-new Mondeo scooping the title of “Most Popular Large Family Car’” and the ultimate “Car of The Year” prize. Transit Custom was named “Most Popular Van” for the second year running and Fiesta “Most Popular Small Hatchback”.

This year’s Honest John awards were split into 15 main categories from ‘City Car’ to ‘Performance Car’ and the ‘Car of The Year’ with the awards determined by the number of vehicle searches on the honestjohn.co.uk website. 

Dan Harrison, editor of honestjohn.co.uk, said: “The latest Ford Mondeo has generated a huge amount of interest in its own right and has fought off strong competition to become our most popular large family car and car of the year. 

The number of users viewing it has been nothing short of phenomenal and it's easy to see why: it has an upmarket interior, efficient engines and is a great all-rounder.”

Of the Ford Fiesta, Dan Harrison said: “We are big fans of the Ford Fiesta. 

Not only is it economical, fun to drive and attractive to the eye, but it is also incredibly refined, which means it is perfect for town and motorway driving. In fact, few small hatchbacks come close to matching the Ford for all-round ability, which is reflected by its unwavering popularity with the readers at HonestJohn.co.uk.”

The Ford Transit Custom was awarded “Most Popular Van” for the second year in a row, with Dan Harrison adding: “In our opinion, the Custom is the benchmark by which all other one tonne vans are judged, with the Ford offering a practical load area and a superb range of 2.2 TDCi engines. Indeed, over the past 12 months, no other commercial vehicle has come close to matching the Custom’s popularity, with more page views than any other van on the site.”

UK COTY - SMALL HATCHBACK - Citroen takes title with multi award winning Cactus.

The New Citroën C4 Cactus has been voted ‘Small Hatchback of the Year’ in the UK Car of the Year Awards 2015. The awards are presented annually by an independent panel of UK journalists who vote for the best new cars on sale in the UK. The winners are announced to coincide with the arrival of the new vehicle registration plate in March.

The Citroën C4 Cactus has been named ‘Small Hatchback of the Year’ in the 2015 UK Car of the Year Awards (UKCOTY). The awards are voted for by an independent judging panel of expert motoring journalists, who are proud to offer impartial advice that is specifically aimed at the British car-buying public.  

The awards are judged across 12 categories, with the winners being selected by professional journalists who are experts in various sectors of the automotive industry. Many of the judges will test drive more than 300 cars per year and reach a combined audience of over 80 million consumers.

The bold and distinctive Citroën C4 Cactus won over the judges in the highly-prized small hatchback category thanks to a variety of attributes, including its “genuine innovation” in this sector. The C4 Cactus is described as “the quirkiest car of the year” with “refreshing looks” and “a sense of fun.”

In addition to this latest accolade from the UKCOTY judging panel, the New C4 Cactus has been presented with a variety of industry awards since its launch in September 2014, including BBC TopGear Magazine ‘Hatchback of the Year’. The New Citroën C4 Cactus is also shortlisted with 6 other finalists for the 2015 European Car of the Year Award.  

QUOTE, UNQUOTE: COMMENTS FROM THE UKCOTY JUDGING PANEL

Tom Ford

“For so long the small hatch has been the place where manufacturers play it safe with styling, afraid to push the boundaries. But no more. The Cactus might be based on humble bones, but the styling and ethos of simplicity are a true breath of fresh air. Making an expensive car appealing is easy – making a cheap car with character is hard.”

Chris Russon

“A great all rounder. Quirky looks, but very functional.”

Alex Goy

“Citroën’s C4 Cactus is a funky French car that doesn't deal in pretention. It deals with the 'eco' issues by being uncomplicated and light, not overly fussy with eco tech as heavier cars would be. The air bumps offer a fun, though aesthetically divisive, solution to the rigors of family life too. Looks the biz and drives nicely.”

Richard Yarrow

“Genuine innovation, great design and honest in its qualities.”

David Ross

“Citroën is back to doing what it does best, making quirky and stylish cars with family appeal.”

Olivia Gauch

“The quirky styling with the Airbump technology makes this car so appealing to buyers. Always refreshing to see something look so different that stands out on the roads. It is also well-priced, comfortable and has a good range of engines available.”

Simon Harris  

“The car is distinctive, attractive, inexpensive to buy and run, and injects a sense of fun into a sector whose products often lack the first and last of those ingredients.”

Matt Joy

“A genuine attempt to reinvent the small car; finally a vehicle that obviously wasn’t honed at the Nurburgring, and is all the better for it.”

Alisdair Suttie

“Quirky, fun and affordable, the C4 Cactus is also practical, safe and all the things a great Citroën – and small hatch – should be.”

Paul Barker
“Exactly the car Citroën should be doing and the kind of thing no other manufacturer is capable of doing. Very efficient, clever and innovative.”

Graeme Lambert
“More innovation from the French. It’s in danger of becoming another ‘journalists’ car, but the Cactus is genuinely different, and like Citroëns of old to drive.”

Guy Bird
“The most original affordable small car launched for years, with a genuinely innovative exterior and a thoughtfully designed interior.”

John Challen – UKCOTY Editor & Managing Director

“Proof that daring to be different when it comes to styling can work. An impressive vehicle to drive and spend time in as well.”