NACTOY announces semifinalists, which means jurors will be doing a lot of driving. But significantly, it announces a scholarship program, too

By Gary S. Vasilash

The North American Car, Truck and Utility of the Year jury consists of 50 journalists* all who work for or contribute to a number of outlets—digital, print, audio, video.

Not only is there a wide array of perspectives that isn’t necessarily the case were they all to work for one outlet (of course, it is incomprehensible that any outlet today covering the automotive industry would have that many people on staff), but the NACTOY awards are completely independent, having no sponsorship.

Although the makeup of the jury has changed over the years, as it has been presenting awards to vehicles since 1994—predicated on such things as innovation, design, safety, handling, driver satisfaction, user experience, and value—it has a solid basis of institutional knowledge when it comes to what makes for award-winning vehicles.

Today NACTOY announced its “The Best of 2026” list, semifinalists for the Car, Truck and Utility awards.

They are:

2026 North American Car of the Year

• Audi A5
• Dodge Charger
• Honda Prelude
• Kia K4 Hatchback
• Mercedes-Benz CLA
• Nissan Sentra

2026 North American Truck of the Year

• Ford F-150 Lobo
• Ford Maverick Lobo
• Ram 1500 Hemi
• Ram 2500
• Rivian R1T Quad Motor

2026 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year

• Acura ADX
• Audi Q5
• Cadillac Escalade IQ
• Cadillac OPTIQ
• Cadillac VISTIQ
• Ford Expedition
• Genesis GV70
• Honda Passport
• Hyundai Ioniq 9
• Hyundai Palisade
• Jeep Cherokee
• Lucid Gravity
• Nissan Leaf
• Polestar 4
• Subaru Forester Hybrid
• Toyota 4Runner
• Toyota RAV4 Hybrid
• Volkswagen Tiguan
• Volvo EX30

The jurors will drive the vehicles at a multi-day event in suburban Detroit in October. The winners will be announced on January 14, 2026, at the Detroit Auto Show.

But there is something arguably more important that NACTOY president Jeff Gilbert announced today: “While our 50 automotive journalists delight in honoring the best vehicles of a new model year, it’s also important to leave a lasting legacy.”

And that legacy takes the form of the SAE NACTOY Automotive Journalism, Design, and Engineering Innovation Scholarships.

Starting in the 2026-27 academic year there will be two scholarships presented, one to an automotive journalism student and one to an automotive design or engineering student.

(For those interested in pursuing the scholarships, go here.)

Acknowledging those vehicle manufacturers who have done a superlative job and helping students who may become the next developers of vehicles or NACTOY jurors goes well beyond just judging ride, handling, performance, and other attributes.

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*I am one of the 50.