The Indian Car of the Year 2020 award ceremony is taking place on December 18 and, unsurprisingly, it is a tough contest. Here is an inside glimpse into what goes on

On December 2, 16 of India’s top automotive journalists gathered at the Budhh International Circuit to drive some cars. But this was not your average track day where folks were rocketing down the straight and unleashing Italian or Teutonic stallions (well, there were some German cars). Mainly, on that day the 16 men were driving all the major vehicles launched in India during 2019. All sorts of cars were there, which in size ranged from the Tata Harrier and MG Hector to the compact Maruti-Suzuki S-Presso and the Renault Triber. There were also ones like the third-generation WagonR, the new Kia Seltos and its cousins from Hyundai, the Venue and i10 Nios as well as the Honda Civic and Nissan Kicks. And I was one of those 16 men, after the steering committee of the Indian Car Of The Year (ICOTY) accepted my application to join them, for which I’m very grateful.

But I’d like to use this column to clarify some doubts and the questions that people have had about the awards. One most commonly asked one is why the racetrack as after all, none of the contenders were developed for it? That is true, but you do not need me to tell you that most Indian roads are utterly chaotic and with unpredictable traffic conditions. Some of the testing we do involves high speeds, heavy braking and sharp turns and frankly, the BIC is, by far, the safest place in India to drive like that. Plus, on the track no one will engage in questions about the legality of driving at 180 kmph. Driving on the track also reminds us of the positives and negatives of the cars and in some cases shows up some newer problems. I discovered that a couple of vehicles were very skittish under extreme braking. And there was one car whose handling on the track was so surprisingly good that it forced me to re-evaluate that vehicle.

And nobody is being timed (at least I hope not) and the award isn’t handed out to the fastest car of the year. Also, almost every single one of us had driven each of these cars over significant distances over the year. I, for one, had spent time with most (if not all) cars in Delhi for at least a week. As I wrote last week, you might think it is a great job switching cars every few days, but not when you have to develop a feel for every car and remember what you felt eight-nine months down the line. Keep in mind that the ICOTY is not necessarily the ‘best’ driving car of the year. The jury members of most COTY awards across the world consider how appropriate a vehicle is for a market and this has been reflected in the awards over the years. Last year’s winner, the Maruti-Suzuki Swift, was a deserving car not just because it is a fun car to drive but because it was felt that it was the best vehicle launched last year.

One can argue, and I have heard this online, that why can’t the judges be given an envelope with a voting form and mail that in. And I would answer that by saying that it does not work like that for a couple of reasons. First, because you really do need to have all the contenders side by side, because voting, and you see this in Hollywood where movies are released just for ‘Oscar Season’, tends to be biased towards the vehicles that you have driven more recently. Second, and personally, I find this of importance, I like to discuss vehicles with my fellow motoring journalists. It is usually stuff like the steering and braking. It is about asking, “Did you feel that too?” Because you want to know whether it was the vehicle’s fault or was it you who made a mistake and believe me, quite often it is the latter.

Being together also keeps the sanctity of the voting process, keeping it democratic where each jury member’s vote has the same significance. While I am a new member of the jury this year, I can tell you with all earnestness that there is no ‘stitch-up’, there is no fix, my vote has the same weight as that of the people who have been members for over a decade. Yes, there were a few very credible contenders but that is because those were very good vehicles. It was to answer such allegations of fixing — think of this like the ‘EVM’s are evil’ by someone who loses in the elections — that this year the ICOTY Jury invited Grant-Thorton to collate the scores of the jury members and be a validator.

There was also a vote for ‘Premium Indian Car Of The Year’ with several German luxury cars in the shootout. After taking some 90 horsepower cars on track, I think we all wanted to have some fun with the 250 horsepower plus vehicles and not feel scared at the end of the straight. This is a new category for this year and an important one because while the ICOTY celebrates appropriateness for the Indian market, the Premium ICOTY also looks at sheer performance and fun, as well as considering a degree of appropriateness for the market.

Frankly, I have no clue who won. I can guess, based on how I voted, but I could be wrong just like I was about the 2019 General Elections. The 16 jury members can have very different opinions on cars and you have to respect that. None of us copy and paste brochures, we try and do an earnest job and that is why we do what we do, so when the award for the ICOTY 2020 is announced on the evening of December 18, it might be a massive surprise for everyone. So keep tuned to Twitter updates and at www.icoty.org