THE STRAITS TIMES CAR OF THE YEAR 2015

ST Car of the Year 2015: What the judges say

Christopher Tan.
David Ting.
Jeremy Chua.
Kevin Chin.
Lynn Tan.
Edric Pan.
Shreejit Changaroth.
Andre Lam.
Tony Tan.

Here are the judges who deliberated over which new car should win the ST Car of the Year title.

Collectively, the nine have clocked about 200 years behind the wheel and 15 decades behind the keyboard to bring you car reviews and automotive news.

They are regular contributors to Life Motoring and Torque, a motoring monthly published by SPH Magazines. Here are some of their comments about this year's finalists.


CHRISTOPHER TAN, 56

Senior Correspondent, The Straits Times, contributing editor, Torque

"To me, this year's crop spreads across more segments of the market. And it is a good sign because it shows that carmakers are not focusing only on the high end. Ford, for instance, has made a fantastic Mondeo. It is a serious premium car disguised as a bread-and- butter model. Mazda is enjoying a renaissance, impressing with the budget Mazda 2 and iconic MX-5. Let's hope more will follow."


DAVID TING, 42

Editor, Torque

"The Mazda MX-5 returns to the fundamentals of fun behind the wheel - low weight, high agility, simple pleasures, good bang for the buck."


JEREMY CHUA, 36

Senior writer, Torque

"The Ford Mondeo is outstanding. The 2-litre Titanium variant is nicely packaged with features you'd expect only in a luxury model. It's a shame that it is so underrated."


KEVIN CHIN, 34

Freelance writer

"Performance, check. Earth-saving credentials, check. Jaw-dropping looks, double check. The BMW i8's impressive powertrain, speed and futuristic looks make its $600,000 price tag seem like good value."


LYNN TAN, 38

Freelance writer

"The BMW i8 deserves to be Car of the Year 2015 because it possesses that elusive X-factor and it has everything you want in a sports car - looks, performance and, best of all, value for money. And it really makes you feel like you are driving the future."


EDRIC PAN, 43

Lawyer

"The BMW 7-series gets my vote by a whisker. Not because it's groundbreaking in any way, but because it is just so good at so many things, that the sum of its parts adds up to a hugely impressive whole. BMW has thrown everything it knows at its flagship, and it shows."


SHREEJIT CHANGAROTH, 58

Engineer

"The Lexus RC is not just fast, but it also has a performance that is easy to exploit and, hence, it is a real pleasure to drive quickly. The sharp-looking two-door is exactly what a sports coupe should be. A rare breed these days."


ANDRE LAM, 57

Dentist

"My pick is the Mazda MX-5. Driving it brought me back to the time I bought the very first- generation MX-5 in 1990. It might not have quite the same impact it had back then, but Mazda's back-to-basics effort has put the car back on my smile list."


TONY TAN, 49

Brand and marketing manager

"The good ol' lightweight, nimble, hatchback formula never came in such a cute package as the Citroen Cactus."

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on December 19, 2015, with the headline ST Car of the Year 2015: What the judges say. Subscribe