The Women on Wheels (WOW) magazine, published by Associated Magazines, runs the only car awards in South Africa decided by women. This year, its readers and the judging panel had 12 categories in which to vote, with more than 79 000 votes received via SMS and online voting from the readers.
"We're excited to announce this year's Women's Car of the Year awards," says Charleen Clarke, editor of WOW and convenor of the judging panel. "The awards have gone bigger and better this year and we would like to thank our readers for their involvement, which has made the results even more significant. The number of votes cast this year was an all-time record, which I believe is indicative of two things, the ongoing allure and following of the WOW brand and that women are dictating which cars they buy."
This year's judging panel for the awards saw Mail & Guardian motoring editor, Sukasha Singh, joining the panel for the first time. Lindsay Vine from DStv's Ignition, motoring blogger Vuyi Jabavu, award-winning motoring journalist Peta Lee, MotorMania editor Mabuyane Kekana and City Press motoring editor Janine-Lee Gordon also joined WOW editor Charleen Clarke.
This had four additional categories included in the awards, with the fast-growing Compact SUV sector having its own category. The Sensible Sedans, Hot Hatches as well as Wagons/Crossovers categories have also been included. "When we conceived this year's WOW, we wanted to offer the readers more - more cars, more choices, more usable information and a better all-round magazine. Feedback from readers has proved that we achieved our goals. We have catered for a wide variety of women, from those who are just staring out to those who need to load the kids, dogs and lots of luggage," says Clarke.
