2011 Urban Wheel Awards Winners Announced

A good month ahead of actually presenting the awards to the winners, the organizers of the Urban Wheel Awards, Emerging Diversity Education Fund (EDEF) and Decisive Media announced today the names of the models considered worthy of receiving the crown during the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) ceremony in January. The awards have been created to honor vehicles in three categories: urban car of the year, urban truck of the year and urban green vehicle of the year. A panel of 15 auto journalists voted on the submissions based on criteria which took into account styling and practicability. The jurors decided on the winners of this year's edition as listed below. The urban car of the year is the 2011 Chevrolet Cruze, picked from the crowd for its “handsome styling, an attractive interior, competent powertrains, an enjoyable driving experience, exceptional practicality, and ready affordability." The urban truck of the year is 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee, perhaps the most well received SUV of the year, because it managed to “incorporate 21st century realities into America's most iconic SUV." The urban green car of the year belongs to a manufacturer used to receiving awards in this category: Volkswagen. Its Jetta TDI was found to have "spacious trunk and interior, the crisp, new, unmistakably European styling, and the reduction in pricing without significantly de-contenting the compact sedan." autoevolution will be attending the 2011 North American International Auto Show, so stay tuned for some real up close and personal shots of the vehicles, as well as for first-hand details of the motorized contraptions.