And the winner of the 2022 World Car of the Year is…

In those distant days when we were all very young and actually mailed letters to parents, friends and other relatives, our addresses didn’t stop at our city or our country. Rather, they would reach across the sky and beyond.

The post office would find us, first zooming in from our universe, solar system, earth, hemisphere, continent, and country, before eventually reaching the mundane of house numbers and streets.

Conversely, some competitions started at the lower ranks, with a winner being crowned Miss Fake Tan, only to later see that person go on to become Miss Village, Miss Town, and Miss County before entering their country’s national competition.

From there it was on to the Miss World pageant while the others were placed in the big three; Miss International, Miss Earth and of course Miss Universe. The solar system obviously dropped a crown and sash somewhere along the way.

In any case, the big three generally advocate “beauty with meaning”, “positive change in the world”, “inner strength and individuality”, “environmental awareness” and so on. Just a guess, but looks could also play a role.

It’s a bit like car prices. There are a great many of them, and they start small with a category winner on a magazine, newspaper or website before being named so-and-so Car of the Year.

Then there are national, regional and world awards. Some are better than others and, as I’ve already written, there are some that are worse.

Regardless of the results, marketing departments will make the most of what they receive. The fiercest rivalry of late has been between two cars that come from the same Korean mothership and share many fundamentals. And of course, as is the fashion these days, both fully electric.

Kia’s EV 6 picked that up Which car? Car of the Year before winning the prestigious European Car of the Year last month, while Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 previously won German Car of the Year and Auto Express car of the year

The Hyundai had also just beaten the Kia in the minds of my colleagues The Irish Time to be their car of the year. The rivalry went to the wire for the World Car Awards, the results of which were announced earlier this month after deliberations from 102 motoring journalists from 33 countries around the world. My colleague, the renowned Eddie Cunningham, of the Irish Independentis the Irish jury.

After all, it was Hyundai that won big at the ceremony scheduled for the New York International Auto Show. The Ioniq 5 won the title of World Car of the Year alongside the titles of Electric Vehicle of the Year and Car Design of the Year. The other two grand prize finalists were the EV6 and the Ford Mustang Mach-E.

I’m happy that Hyundai won. It’s more family-friendly, more affordable (starting at €38,995 starting price) and, in my opinion, particularly stylish. Still, the EV6 is a real game-changer for Kia in terms of design. You would be proud to own either one. And that’s what nearly 2,000 new owners did in the first three months of the year.

With 1,072 sales, the Ioniq 5 was the best-selling electric vehicle in the country, and the Kia was third with 597 units. The VW ID.4 that separates the Koreans sold 740.

With such shared success, it is no wonder that the World Car Jury announced that Luc Donckerwolke, Chief Creative Officer of Hyundai Motor Group, has been named Person of the Year 2022 for his significant contribution to overseeing new model developments including the Ioniq 5 and EV 6 became.

Anyway, with any luck, award season is over for another year, unless I can get my colleagues into a darkened room at some point. But I think you know what the result would be anyway.

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Since its debut in Ireland last September, the Renault Arkana has been a huge success story for the French company.

In fact, it was the third most successful among all-new cars launched late last year.

It had 771 sales in the first three months, behind the Toyota Yaris Cross with 1,140 sales and the Ioniq 5.

It’s a coupe-like crossover, with big wheels and high ground clearance without actually being very big.

All models are very well equipped and with starting prices under €30,000 and a Renault Bank PCP program of €252 per month, the car represents good value for money. There’s also an excellent five-year warranty.

It’s Renault’s first purpose-built hybrid, although you won’t get the full benefits of the system unless you opt for the pricier E-Tech models, with their twin electric motors, over the mild-hybrid engines.

In terms of price, the difference is not that big, but the price “walks” are worth it, even though all models have absolutely first-class safety assistance features.

The Arkana is a spacious family car with lots of luggage space. However, the rear headroom is somewhat limited due to the sloping roof, although this is good for wind resistance. It’s pretty quiet, but has a lot of features that are just live with.

In the city, the electrified system of the E-Tech models is very economical and I have no doubt that the 4.9 l/100 km is achievable.

Keeping going on Autobahns is different, but smart use of one-foot braking/acceleration pays off.

The ride can be a bit rough at times, but overall this is good all-round driving.

I didn’t like the rear view, the lack of a rear wiper, the high step to the car or quite frankly the mess of looks.

But then I also hated the BMW X6 when it first came out as a massively expensive coupe/crossover.

However, the technology on board is excellent, very easy to use and in my opinion this would be a very enjoyable relatively inexpensive family car.

It doesn’t have the poise or class of cars like the Hyundai Tucson or Kia Sportage.

Still, the arcana, while a bit like the camel, has its place, designed by a committee and quite crowded.

For the price, it’s definitely worth checking out.