WHAT CAR AWARDS - Citroen takes a best buy at this years awards ceremony with the C3 Picasso.

The family-friendly practicality and low running costs of the Citroën C3 Picasso PureTech 110 manual Edition was recognised at the 2016 What Car? Car of the Year Awards earlier this evening, when it was named ‘MPV Best Buy for less than £16,000’.

Speaking on behalf of the What Car? judging panel, Haymarket Automotive’s Editorial Director, Jim Holder, commented; “The C3 Picasso might be small, but it’s an eminently practical car. 

You sit quite high up, the visibility is excellent all-round, the boot is big and square-shaped, and the interior feels airy and spacious; the rear seats are split 60/40 and slide forwards and backwards for added interior versatility.” Jim continued; “[The] doors open wide and have broad apertures, so access is great if you’ve got child seats to reach in for.”

In addition to the C3 Picasso’s design and versatility, the judges were impressed with the choice of engines. They singled out the 1.2 litre turbocharged three-cylinder petrol as their top choice. 

Jim Holder concluded; “It does a fine job in the C3 Picasso, delivering nippy responses around town, and coping well on the motorway. It achieved nearly 50mpg in our real-world economy tests, too. Ultimately, the C3 Picasso may be all the MPV smaller families could ever need.”

Chris Cheetham, Citroën’s Marketing Director in the UK, said; “It is always an honour to receive such prestigious recognition for one of our cars, but it is especially gratifying when that award recognises the car for exactly what it was designed to be. 

The C3 Picasso is made with family life and family journeys in mind, so to win this accolade and hear those comments from the expert judges is very pleasing indeed.”

The Citroën C3 Picasso PureTech 110 manual Edition is available from just £15,805 MRRP OTR.

WHAT CAR AWARDS - Vauxhalls takes teh honours in the family category with the New Astra.

Vauxhall’s all-new Brit-built Astra has been recognised in the Family Car category at the What Car? Awards 2016, held at Grosvenor House on Park Lane. In the Best Buy under £16,000, the Astra 1.0 Turbo ecoFLEX Design topped its extremely competitive class.

What Car? judges commented: “The new Vauxhall Astra represents a huge improvement over its predecessor. It’s entertaining and sure-footed to drive, while big leaps in interior design and quality make it feel more premium than ever.”

“We’re delighted the Astra has been recognised by What Car?” said Rory Harvey, Vauxhall’s Chairman and Managing Director. “The Brit-built Astra has been very well-received and we’re looking forward to a full year of sales in 2016.”

This latest award follows many recent successes including the Astra winning the Scottish Car of the Year. This landmark award was part of four-trophy haul at the Scottish Car of the Year awards, where Astra and VIVA also won Compact, Eco and Family categories between them.

Also last year, Vauxhall OnStar, a comprehensive package, which includes a high-speed 4G LTE mobile network, emergency response notification and stolen vehicle recovery technology, won the Auto Express Technology Award and the BusinessCar Techies Award.

Vauxhall has also received plaudits in the van sector with its Brit-built Vivaro beating stiff competition to win Fleet Van of the Year at the Motor Transport Awards and Best Medium Panel Van at last year’s Commercial Fleet Awards. It was also named Medium Van of the Year, for the second year running, at the 2016 What Van? Awards, while the previous generation Vivaro picked up the Used Van of the Year title.

Europe-wide, Vauxhall/Opel’s range of models has also picked up a plethora of awards:

Astra

• Auto Bild and Bild am Sonntag: Golden Steering Wheel 2015, Car of the Year, Best Choice and Family Car
• AUTOBEST: SAFETYBEST 2015 award for IntelliLux LED headlights

OnStar

• Auto Bild and Computer Bild: Connected Car and Pioneer Award

Corsa

• AUTOBEST: Best Buy Car of Europe for 2015

ADAM

• AMS Readers’ Choice Award for the best car in the mini-car category

WHAT CAR AWARDS - Double delight for Nissan with Qashqai and Pulsar winning awards.

• Nissan Qashqai retains crown as What Car?’s Best Small SUV
  • British-built Qashqai praised for blend of comfort, refinement and practicality
  • New n-tec+ trim is the judges’ pick with class-leading levels of refinement, generous standard equipment and overall practicality
• Newly launched Pulsar hatchback chosen as a Best Buy Family car under £16,000 for 1.2 DIG-T 115 Visia
  • Newcomer praised for “incredible value” offering customers the “complete package”
  • Entry-level model gets air-conditioning, electric windows, Bluetooth and six airbags

It was a successful night for Nissan at the annual What Car? Awards in London as the brand scooped an overall category win along with a Best Buy Family Car accolade.

For the second year running, Nissan’s pioneering Qashqai crossover won the title of Best Small SUV while the all-new Pulsar hatchback was chosen as a Best Buy Family car under £16,000 in the hugely competitive Family Car category.

Designed, engineered and built in Britain, the Qashqai continues to deliver an unrivalled package of technology, safety, practicality and efficiency

James Wright, Managing Director, Nissan Motor GB, said: “After winning Qashqai’s category and the outrightCar of the Year crown last year, we are extremely delighted with this year’s category win – especially considering the strong competition in this fast-growing segment.

“Like the Qashqai, the new Pulsar majors on technical innovations, safety and practicality – boasting the largest rear legroom of any C-segment hatchback available in the UK. It adds yet another dimension to Nissan’s diverse product line-up and ensures the brand offers a product to suit every customer’s needs.”

Jim Holder, Editor of What Car? said: “The Qashqai was chosen on the strength of its overall offering in terms of practicality, refinement and standard equipment. As impressive at the new Citroen and Range Rover are, neither really come close to dethroning the Qashqai as our top Small SUV.

“The Pulsar meanwhile delivers incredible value with the entry grade Visia. It’s hard to think of any other model in this price bracket that offers such a complete package.”

As standard, the Pulsar 1.2 DIG-T 115 Visia costs £15,995 OTR and benefits from air-conditioning, Bluetooth, electric windows, 16-inch alloys as well as safety equipment such as six airbags, tyre pressure monitoring and electronic stability control.

Testament to the Qashqai’s popularity, Nissan produced the two millionth Qashqai at its Sunderland factory in November last year – making it the fastest car model to reach this milestone in the history of the UK car industry.

What Car?’s favourite Qashqai is the recently introduced n-tec+ model, which replaced the Acenta Premium grade. With n-tec+, owners get and even greater level of value thanks to a multitude of safety and comfort features including Around View Monitor (AVM), Forward Emergency Brake (FEB), and additional equipment including roofrails and a Panoramic roof with prices starting at £22,250 OTR (or £21,700 OTR for n-tec).

WHAT CAR AWARDS - Citroen celebrates with three awards, C3 & C4 Picasso and C4 Cactus.

• Citroën Grand C4 Picasso retains title for ‘Best MPV’ in What Car? Car of the Year Awards 2015
• What Car? judges praise Grand C4 Picasso’s ‘unrivalled’ comfort, equipment & value for money
• New Citroën C4 Cactus named ‘Best Buy: less than £16,000’ in the ‘Small SUV’ category
• Citroën C3 Picasso also honoured as ‘Best Buy: less than £16,000’ in the ‘MPV’ category  

Just 12 months on from its UK launch, the Citroën Grand C4 Picasso has been crowned ‘MPV of the Year’ for the second year in succession at the prestigious What Car? Car of the Year Awards 2015.

The What Car? Awards judging panel named the Grand C4 Picasso 1.6 e-HDi 115 Exclusive its ‘favourite MPV’ at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London earlier this evening. The judges praised the Grand C4 Picasso for offering ‘one of the most efficient ways of transporting seven’ and providing all of the ‘essentials for families’, whilst representing an ‘unrivalled’ combination of space, equipment and affordable pricing. 

Jim Holder, Editor of What Car?, said; “The Grand C4 Picasso does a rare thing, which is offer sixth and seventh seats that can accommodate two adults, and that’s before you consider the five in front. Everyone onboard is sure to benefit from an impressive amount of space. The Grand C4 Picasso isn’t just big, though, it’s clever. Three individually sliding and reclining middle-row seats mean you’ll have a good chance of fitting three child seats. In addition, the rearmost seats can be folded out of the way to leave a massive expanse for a trip to the tip.

“Families will also love the way the Citroën costs them less than rivals. This 1.6-litre diesel performed strongly in our True MPG tests, despite being powerful enough to haul around a full load of people and luggage. Exclusive trim brings important safety kit as well as climate control, rear parking sensors, a reversing camera and sat-nav. It’s one of the most efficient ways of transporting seven, as well as being practical enough to meet a huge range of needs, cementing its position as our favourite MPV.”

Bekir Hassan, UK Brand Director for Citroën and DS, said; “The Grand C4 Picasso continues to lead the way in terms of class-beating interior space, comfort and record levels of efficiency in the MPV segment. We’re brimming with pride at the news that the Grand C4 Picasso has once again been named ‘Best MPV’ in the What Car? Car of the Year Awards.”

As well as winning the overall MPV category, the What Car? Awards judges voted for the Grand C4 Picasso 1.6 e-HDi 115 Exclusive as the ‘MPV Best Buy’ at the £16,000 to £22,000 price point.

Continuing the winning streak, the New Citroën C4 Cactus 1.2 PureTech 110 Feel was named ‘Small SUV Best Buy: less than £16,000’. Meanwhile, the Citroën C3 Picasso 1.4 VTi 95 VTR+ was victorious as the ‘MPV Best Buy: less than £16,000’.