The North American Car, Truck, and Utility of the Year Awards (NACTOY) are prestigious among automotive honors. A jury of 50 automotive media professionals independently evaluates new or significantly upgraded vehicles each year to find the best among them.
The NACTOY jurors whittled the eligible models down to three vehicles in each category. Historically, announcing the winners takes place during the North American International Auto Show in Detroit at Huntington Place – formerly Cobo Hall. Here are this year’s champions.
The 2025 NACTOY Winners
The Honda Civic Hybrid is the North American Car of the Year. The Ford Ranger is North American Truck of the Year, and the Volkswagen ID. Buzz was the North American Utility of the Year.
The Civic Hybrid scored an easy victory this year. The NACTOY jurors awarded it 205 points. In comparison, the Kia K4 received 165 points, and the Toyota Camry got 130 points.
This was the fourth win for the Civic. It was previously North American Car of the Year in 2006, 2016, and 2022.
“Among the cars, the Civic Hybrid stands out with an excellent combination of fuel efficiency, still fun to drive with a more pleasant powertrain than the Toyota and good room and value. The K4 is a huge step up from the Forte and the GT-Line is still impressively efficient. With a hybrid option, the Kia might have overtaken the Civic for me,”
– juror Sam Abuelsamid, VP of Research at Telemetry.
Here’s How The Rest Did
The fight among the finalists was closer in the truck category. The Ranger scored 183 points to beat the Ram 1500 with 161 points and the
with 156 points. This was the fifth consecutive year of Ford winning the North American Truck of the Year award.
The jurors praised the Ranger’s size due to the truck’s usability and utility.
“A solid performer, it’s big enough to do a real truck’s job, ruggedly built for off-road adventures, yet it’s small enough to park anywhere,”
– freelance journalist Ken Gross.
The closest competition was in the utility class. The ID. Buzz scored 187 points, but the Hyundai Santa Fe received 185 points. The Chevrolet Equinox was a distant third with 128 points.
The jurors praised the electric minivan’s retro styling while still being usable.
“No vehicle in the last ten years has captured the imagination, while also bringing the past into the future, better than the Volkswagen ID. Buzz. It is an inspired Volkswagen design for the ages… again,”
– Motorweek host John Davis.
TopSpeed’s Take
A fascinating array of vehicles won the NACTOY awards this year. There’s a hybrid Civic, the electric ID. Buzz minivan and the combustion-powered Ranger. The selections demonstrate the breadth of vehicles on the market today.
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