by THE The Car of the Year/Troféu Volante de Cristal award was awarded in 2023 to the Renault Austral, which thus succeeds the Peugeot 308. The French manufacturer is thus distinguished with an award it has not received for 20 years. Remember that in 2003, the Renault Mégane was awarded in its second generation.
Among 22 shortlisted candidates, the final was decided between seven cars, with the Australian receiving the highest number of votes from the national jury.
Renault’s SUV beat the Honda Civic, Nissan Ariya, Peugeot 408, Renault Mégane E-TECH Electric, Skoda Fabia and the Volkswagen ID. buzz.
With no diesel engines, Renault’s new SUV debuted in the E-Tech Hybrid block and has two options to choose from: the 1.2 TCe 48V mild hybrid engine and the 1.3 TCe 12V mild hybrid engine.
Let’s start with the 48V hybrid version of the Austral, which will be available in two different power outputs (197 hp and 158 hp). This version will have the turbocharged 1.2-liter three-cylinder gasoline engine paired with a 67-horsepower electric motor connected to a small 1.7 kWh battery.
The block is mated to a seven-speed automatic gearbox, while the battery is recharged via brake regeneration. According to Renault, 80% of city driving can be done in electric mode.
As for the “lighter” hybrid option, it will also have two variants. Both use a 1.3-liter turbo four-cylinder gasoline engine (138 and 158 hp) also mated to an automatic transmission.
All the winners of the Car of the Year awards in Portugal
- 1985 – Nissan Micra
- 1986 – Saab Turbo 16
- 1987 – Renault 21
- 1988 – Citroën AX
- 1989 – Peugeot 405
- 1990 – Volkswagen Passat
- 1991 – Nissan Primera
- 1992 – Seat Toledo
- 1993 – Toyota Carina E
- 1994 – Seat Ibiza
- 1995 – Fiat Punto
- 1996 – Audi A4
- 1997 – Volkswagen Passat
- 1998 – Alfa Romeo 156
- 1999 – Audi TT
- 2000 – Seat Toledo
- 2001 – Seat Leon
- 2002 – Renault Laguna
- 2003 – Renault Megane
- 2004 – Volkswagen Golf
- 2005 – Citroën C4
- 2006 – Volkswagen Passat
- 2007 – Citroën C4 Picasso
- 2008 – Nissan Qashqai
- 2009 – Citroën C5
- 2010 – Volkswagen Polo
- 2011 – Ford C-Max
- 2012 – Peugeot 508
- 2013 – Volkswagen Golf
- 2014 – Seat Leon
- 2015 – Volkswagen Passat
- 2016 – Opel Astra
- 2017 – Peugeot 3008
- 2018 – Seat Ibiza
- 2019 – Peugeot 508
- 2020 – Toyota Corolla
- 2021 – Seat Leon
- 2022 – Peugeot 308
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