How Does ACOTY Define This Class?

Hot hatches, coupes, cabriolets and wagons are allowed in this category. They need to go around corners like a wet dream and get their owners hot under the collar before each drive.

Meet The Contenders

Three Germans feature this year. They are the Porsche Boxster (top left), Volkswagen Golf R (top right) and Mercedes-Benz CLE 200 (middle left).

Also in the contest, representing the UK, is the Lotus Emira (middle right), and representing Japan is the Subaru BRZ STI.

The Porsche Boxster needs no introduction. With wind in your hair, the Boxster is as quick as lightning, goes around corners like its on rails, feels beautifully exquisite to sit in and touch, and wears the glorious Porsche badge. ’nuff said.

If it’s hot-hatchery you’re after, the Volkswagen Golf R comes highly recommended. 315hp and 420Nm of torque make this hatchback go like the proverbial scalded cat. Practicality doesn’t take a backseat either, as it has very usable back seats and boot. Strap your family in and go for a blast!

Want a more practical coupe instead? The Mercedes-Benz CLE 200 has you covered. It may not be the quickest thing around, but can neatly string a set of bends together while looking and feeling bespoke, refined, and designed with a purpose. All done with comfort, style and efficiency.

What about a coupe with an almost single-minded purpose then? Look no further than the Lotus Emira, which stands testament to Lotus’ ability to build a proper sports car that looks absolutely gorgeous.

It goes like the clappers, changes direction faster than a traumatized feline, stops smartly and does all of that with the delicacy of a ballerina executing physics-defying moves. Get one while you can.

Which then brings us to the entry-level sports car of the group, the Subaru BRZ STI. Endowed with a naturally aspirated 2.4-litre boxer engine and rear-wheel drive, this is one seriously sweet-handling coupe without the price tag of the others. And it’s quite practical.

Although only one won, you won’t go wrong with any of these diverse choices.

AutoApp Car Of The Year Best Sports Car
Mercedes-Benz CLE 200

Believe us, we were as surprised as you are when the points were totted up and the result announced internally. But, in a very interesting way, we all arrived at the same conclusion with our individual scores.

The Mercedes-Benz CLE 200 takes the W with 377 points. Let’s face it, most car owners in Singapore need their one car to do practically everything, and the Merc fits that all-round bill the best.

More on the scoring categories used to derive points here.

Congratulations to the Mercedes-Benz CLE 200 for winning the AutoApp Car of the Year 2025 Best Sports Car!

Read more automotive news at AutoApp, or check out our latest videos on Ignition Labs TV and on TikTok!

How Does ACOTY Define This Class?

Pretty simple, actually. Commercial electric vehicles needs to be registered on Goods plates, able to haul cargo and powered by the zappy-zappy lecky stuff born of electron vibrations.

Meet The Contenders

We drove three electric vans this year, which qualified them for this category. They are, clockwise from top left, the Opel Combo-e, Citroën e-Dispatch and Opel Vivaro-e.

The Opel Combo-e is the smaller of the three vans, while the Citroën e-Dispatch and Opel Vivaro-e are effectively the same vehicle from parent group Stellantis with different badges.

Choosing a winner was a very difficult task for the four of us, not in the least bit because all three are excellent electric vans. We liked the compactness of the Opel Combo-e while simultaneously appreciating the capaciousness of the Citroën e-Dispatch and Opel Vivaro-e.

We were amazed at how quiet cargo haulage on the roads and highways can be, courtesy of the electric drivetrain of each van. We were also impressed with the simplicity and ruggedness of each van, in a nod to just getting on with the task at hand.

In fact, our scores reflected this difficulty. Literally THREE points separated these three vans, showcasing how excellent they are. One isn’t bound to go wrong with any of them. Ultimately, there had to be a winner.

AutoApp Car Of The Year Best Commercial EV
Opel Vivaro-e

The winner is the Opel Vivaro-e with 315 points. What pipped it for the Opel Vivaro-e was its price as well as the offering of keyless start and stop. The Vivaro-e was also just slightly more energy-efficient.

More on the scoring categories used to derive points here.

Congratulations to the Opel Vivaro-e, for winning the AutoApp Car of the Year 2024 Best Commercial EV!

Read more automotive news at AutoApp, or check out our latest videos on Ignition Labs TV!

How Does ACOTY Define This Class?

No hot hatches, performance sedans or wagons are allowed in here. They need to be purpose-built coupes or cabriolets that go around corners like a wet dream and get their owners hot under the collar before each drive. They should also be priced below the 90th percentile.

Meet The Contenders

One is German and the other Japanese – Toyota GR86 takes on BMW M2.

Toyota, in collaboration with Subaru, came out with the successor to the famed AE86 with the rear-wheel drive GT86 back in 2012. Here in its second generation, this GR86 gets a larger 2.4-litre boxer-four engine taking horsepower and torque upwards, making this sports coupe that much more flexible than its predecessor.

Some enthusiasts may bemoan the lack of a turbocharged powerplant, but being naturally aspirated means the GR86 can be driven at or close to ten-tenths without getting one into too much trouble. The driver sits low in the cockpit and feels every molecule of the tarmac through their hands, lower back and bum. The GR86 handles so well and is so easy to drive that it easily qualifies as “my first sports car.”

The BMW M2, on the other hand, brings a bazooka to a knife fight. Putting 453hp through just the rear wheels means that its driver better knows what they’re doing, for if they do, the M2 will reward in buckets. Bucket-like sports seats come as standard, and carbon-fibre buckets can be optioned if one decides to be that hardcore.

Put your foot down, and the M2’s three-litre turbocharged straight six howls with glee as it hurls the car down the straight to set up for and negotiate the next corner. This IS the spiritual successor to the much-beloved E36 and E46 BMW M3.

Although only one won, you won’t go wrong with either of these superb choices.

AutoApp Car Of The Year Best Sports Car
BMW M2

The BMW M2 takes the W with 373 points. Despite being significantly more expensive than the GR86, you get a lot for your money here. Add to that the special experience that comes with M-cars and it’s not difficult to see why the M2 won.

More on the scoring categories used to derive points here.

Congratulations to the BMW M2 for winning the AutoApp Car of the Year 2024 Best Sports Car!

Read more automotive news at AutoApp, or check out our latest videos on Ignition Labs TV!