The Tesla Model S was declared the 2013 World Green Car today at the 2013 New York Auto Show. The Tesla Model S was chosen out of a wide range of 21 new vehicles on the market from not just the US but all over the world. The list was then shortlisted to 10 vehicles and then 3 finalists which were; the Tesla Model S, the Renault Zoe and the Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid. However the Tesla proved to be the most compelling model out of the 3.
Winning the 2013 World Green Car award is great acknowledgment of what Tesla has accomplished with Model S in the last four years.” said Elon Musk, Tesla Motors co-founder and CEO.“
To be eligible for the 2013 World Green Car award, a vehicle must meet a large number of criteria to qualify. This includes being all-new, substantially revised, and the vehicle must have been in production for over for sale or least to the public in quantities of at least 10 in at least one major vehicle market between January 1, 2012 to May 30th, 2013. Tailpipe emissions, fuel consumption, and use of a major advanced power plant technology (beyond engine componentry), aimed specifically at increasing the vehicle’s eco-friendliness are all taken into consideration.
Due to the complexity of some of the ‘green’ technologies on the vehciles, 5 green experts were appointed by the World Car Awards Steering Committee to extensively review all documentation and specs associated with each candidate. They were asked to create a short-list of finalists for review by the 66 jurors in their second round of voting in February. Their ballots were then counted by KPMG, an accounting firm.
The 5 experts who were chosen from around the world include;
- Phil Berg from Popular Mechanics (US)
- Richard Bremner from cleangreencars.co.uk (UK)
- Claus-Peter Koeth from automobil-industrie.de (Germany)
- Tadashi Tateuchi of the Japan Electric Vehicle Club (Japan)
- John Voelcker from GreenCarReports.com (US)
The experts commented that, “The Tesla Model S has wowed the world’s press, and for good reason: It’s a car from a startup maker that actually competes on its merits with vehicles from established global players. The Model S is fast and stylish, its high-end models offer more range than any other electric car, and thus far, it appears to be well-built and selling well. Now that it’s in volume production, it can be argued that it is already the world’s most alluring green car that’s also practical and desirable.”
“There have only been two pure electric cars with a sensible range, and both have been made by Tesla. Its Roadster would go at least 180 miles and the Model S a lot further than that. It also seats up to seven, is almost supercar swift, swoopily styled and recharge time apart and absurd width apart as practical as a family sedan. It’s not cheap, but certainly isn’t expensive for what it does”.
The World Green Car award is presented by the Bridgestone Tire Corporation of Japan. “We are very pleased and honored to sponsor the 2013 World Green Car award. The environment is everyone’s responsibility. And throughout our global family of companies, we take this responsibility very seriously. We believe it is our mission to serve society with superior quality”. said Mike Martini, President, Original Equipment, U.S. & Canada Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations.
Previous World Green Car winners include the Mercedes-Benz S 250 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY in 2012, the Chevrolet Volt in 2011, the Volkswagen BlueMotion in 2010, the Honda FCX Clarity in 2009, the BMW 118d with Efficient Dynamics in 2008, the Mercedes-Benz E320 Bluetec in 2007 and the Honda Civic Hybrid in 2006.
The Tesla Model S has also racked up other notable awards including MotorTrend magazine’s 2013 Car of the Year award and Automobile Magazine’s ‘2013 Automobile of the Year’ award and numerous other auto awards. Now the Tesla Model S is the 2013 World Green Car of the Year as well. Keep racking up the awards Tesla!
