If 2020 had been a normal year, this week would have been packed with news from the New York International Auto Show. Instead, the Javits Center in Manhattan is being converted into a mass intensive care unit to handle up to 3,000 COVID-19 patients. That has crimped the plans of every OEM hoping to make a splash with a new reveal at NYIAS this year, but one small slice of normality remains—the World Car Awards. Instead of holding a press conference in New York, the steering committee decided to use the power of YouTube to make the announcements from the safety of their homes. And as yours truly is one of the jurors, I figured it was worth climbing my way out of a pit of existential despair to bring you the winners.

Each juror is only allowed to vote for a car they’ve actually driven. For the first round of voting, we are asked to rank the cars in each category. Once that’s done, the second round asks jurors to rank the finalists from 1 to 10 in a range of attributes, including design, safety, performance, technology, the environment, value for money, and so on, with the final three being announced a few weeks ahead of time.

World Urban Car

Of the top three finalists, I’ve driven two of them—the Kia Soul EV, which made my top 10 cars of 2019, and the Volkswagen T-Cross, which decidedly didn’t. The third contender is the Mini Electric—my press loan is not scheduled until mid-May, so in the meantime you could always check out Jonny Smith’s recent video review. The other cars that didn’t make it were the Peugeot 208, Renault Clio, Hyundai Venue (which I thought was rather good), Opel/Vauxhall Corsa, and the Renault Zoe R135.

But like the highlander (the one with the sword, not the Toyota SUV) there can be only one, and 2020’s World Urban Car of the Year is the Kia Soul EV.

World Performance Car

Unsurprisingly, this is one of my favorite categories. I managed to drive some of the contenders this year, including all three of the finalists. But spare a thought for the cars that didn’t make the cut: the Alpine A110S, Audi RS6 Avant, Audi RS7 Sportback (which I adore), Audi S8, Audi SQ8, BMW Z4, Mercedes AMG A35/45, and the Mercedes AMG CLA35/45.

The finalists in the World Performance Car were the BMW M8, Toyota GR Supra, and then the top three, all from Porsche. These were the 718 Spyder/Cayman GT4, the Porsche 911, and the Porsche Taycan. And the winner, as you might expect, is the Porsche Taycan. This won’t be a surprise to anyone who has driven it, because it really is both an amazing Porsche and an amazing electric car.

World Luxury Car

Candidates for this category that didn’t impress the jurors enough were the BMW Z4, Cadillac CT5, Cadillac XT6, Mercedes-Benz GLE, Mercedes-Benz GLS, and the Toyota GR Supra (which seems odd in this category, but I’m not on the steering committee…). The finalists for the best new luxury cars introduced in 2020 were the BMW X5 and BMW X7, but the top three included two battery-electric cars. These are the Mercedes-Benz EQC and Porsche’s 911 and Taycan.

Again, there can be only one, and it’s the Taycan. Again, I’m not surprised—it would have scored highly for both performance and the environment, but it’s also really that good.

World Car Design of the Year

There were five cars in this category for 2020. The Alpine 110S and Mazda CX-30 were finalists but not ranked in the top three. Here, the finalists were the Mazda 3, the Peugeot 208, and yet again, the Porsche Taycan. This year’s winner? The Mazda 3.

World Car of the Year

Last year, Jaguar’s I-Pace swept the board, and there were fears that Porsche’s excellent Taycan would do the same, so the rules were tweaked such that cars that cost more than $150,000 were not eligible for a big award. You can read the entire list of candidates for WCOTY here, but the finalists were the Hyundai Sonata, Kia Soul EV, Land Rover Range Rover Evoque, Mercedes-Benz CLA, Mercedes-Benz GLB, Volkswagen Golf, and Volkswagen T-Cross.

The top three finalists for 2020 are the Kia Telluride—Ars Managing Editor Eric Bangeman’s favorite SUV—my favorite crossover the Mazda CX-30 and its sister car the Mazda 3. All three are darn fine vehicles. There isn’t a better three-row SUV under $50,000 than the Telluride (and its sister the Hyundai Pallisade); the CX-30 is my default recommendation when someone asks me what crossover they should buy, and the closely related Mazda 3 has an interior that rivals luxury cars that cost $15,000 to $20,000 more.

But again, only one car can win, and 2020’s World Car of the Year is the Kia Telluride. My antipathy for SUVs is pretty well-known by now, but even I can’t hate because Eric’s right—if you need a three-row SUV, the Telluride is spectacular.

If you want to watch the unconventional award ceremony, YouTube has you covered:

https://arstechnica.com/?p=1666805