CNBC-TV18 OVERDRIVE Awards 2016: Nominees for Compact Car of the Year

Four wee contenders look to dominate the small car segment in India - and the hearts of our jury panel

Overdrive|Dec 07, 2015, 17:16:06 IST

The Indian Automotive market is still dominated by small cars. This year we have four contenders for the CNBC-TV18 OVERDRIVE Compact Car of the Year award. The first is a bold attempt from Renault. Where most manufacturers simply make another small car, Renault dared to be different. Riding on the wave of SUV demand in India, the French firm has developed a small car that has visually arresting SUV design themes. The little Kwid’s aggressive squared off design will no doubt appeal to small car buyers who wish to stand out.

Tata challenges for the title with the Bolt hatchback. Boasting new levels of quality and engineering from the Indian manufacturer, the Bolt aims at winning the hearts of both our jurors and the market at large.

Ford however have no plans of making things easy for the other two with a double onslaught from its brand new Figo twins. Both the Figo Aspire compact sedan and the Figo hatchback have proven to be impressive machines with strong diesel engines and well-specced feature lists. There's also the fact that both the Aspire and the Figo hatch won in their respective comparison tests earlier this year.

The Compact Car of the Year category will be judged by a panel of experts on a range of criteria including how well they suit the role, value for the money they demand and also how involving they are to drive. No matter the category, we at OVERDRIVE value driving involvement. A car has to put a smile on its drivers face, no matter what power or price and that's definitely one of the criteria in our judging process.

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CNBC-TV18 OVERDRIVE Awards 2016: Nominees for Compact Car of the Year

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Tesla's Cybercab to feature built-in Starlink antenna, bringing satellite internet to robotaxis

US rejects Tesla bid to avoid recall of nearly 20,000 vehicles over headlight issue

IIT Kanpur study finds no evidence E20 petrol damages engines, says mileage impact is minimal

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Volkswagen layoffs could hit 1 lakh as CEO warns of deeper cost overhaul