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Johannesburg - The battle for the 2016 Car of the Year saw 12 of the top vehicles in South Africa, voted by the South African Guild of Motoring Journalists (SAGMJ), compete for the coveted title.
It came down to the wire for the 12 finalists at a gala event Johannesburg. For the first time in the competition, the first and second runners-up was revealed.
Each of the 12 contenders were put through stringent testing by 27 jury members during a two-day evaluation process earlier in February 2016 at the Gerotek test facility just outside Pretoria.
Winner revealed
The Volvo XC90 has been crowned the 2016 SA Car of the Year.
Volvo South Africa managing director, Greg Maruszewski, said: "We are absolutely delighted with our victory. With the all-new XC90 we are not only re-writing the rules of a post-modern luxury driving experience but reinventing our brand as well.
"Our ethos, 'Made by Sweden', expresses our intrinsic Scandinavian roots, love for people, heritage and attitude to building some of the world's most desirable - and safest - luxury vehicles. The all-new XC90 follows in the footsteps of the Volvo S40, which received the coveted award in 2005."
In second place is the Ford Fusion
... and the Mazda 2 in third.
The majority of Wheels24 users voted for the Ford Fusion as their SA Car of the Year in our homepage poll.
What do you think of the 2016 SA Car of the Year? Does it deserve to win? Email us and we'll publish your thoughts.
SAGMJ chairman, Bernie Hellberg Jnr, talks about the 2016 SA Car of the Year:
Read: 2016 SA Car of the Year - Users' choice
Full list of finalists below:
Opel Corsa
Jaguar XE
Peugeot 308
Land Rover Discovery Sport
Mazda 2
Kia Sorento
Citroen C4 Cactus
Honda HR-V
Ford Fusion
Opel Adam
Volvo XC90
BMW i3
Read - SA Car of the Year: What you need to know about the 12 finalists
