DETROIT — The electrical Ford F-150 Lightning was named 2023 North American Truck of the Yr whereas the Kia EV6 was named Utility Car of the Yr and the Acura Integra took Automotive of the Yr honors.
The Lightning’s victory marks the third-straight yr Ford has gained the truck award, following the Maverick in 2022 and F-150 in 2021.
The winners, introduced Wednesday, have been chosen by means of a three-part voting course of by a jury of fifty automotive journalists from U.S. and Canadian media. The autos have been picked from three finalists in every class revealed in November.
The 2022 NACTOY winners have been the Honda Civic, Ford Maverick and Ford Bronco.
The Lightning’s victory is the newest in a string of awards for Ford’s electrical pickup since its April 2022 launch. The car final month was named MotorTrend‘s Truck of the Yr.
“It reveals us the sentiment on the market for electrical vans,” stated Darren Palmer, vp of electrical car packages at Ford. “It helps affirm the investments we’re making, as a result of we’re all-in on main in electrical. The groups will likely be bolstered by this success as a result of we’re already engaged on our subsequent era of vans and vehicles.”
The Integra’s victory was Acura’s first NACTOY award since 2001, whereas Kia netted its first NACTOY win since 2020 and second total as a model. This yr marked the primary time all three utility class finalists have been EVs.
The Integra, again in showrooms final yr after gross sales of the prior era resulted in 2006, was the only gas-powered car to win.
“It’s a reinforcement that we now have a implausible product,” stated Emile Korkor, assistant vp of Acura nationwide gross sales. “It’s core to our DNA, having an entry car like this, brining again that Integra nameplate.”
The 50 NACTOY jurors embody Richard Truett, an engineering reporter for Automotive Information.
The awards have been based in 1994.