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World Car of the Year finalists announced

To say the 2014 Geneva Motor Show was packed full of news is an understatement as big as the show's home at the Palexpo convention center. Despite everything that we were able to cover during this year's show, there's still more coming out of Switzerland, including the announcement of the finalists for the 2014 World Car of the Year Awards.
We reported on the original list of finalists over three weeks ago, and now, that initial list has been pared down to three finalists for each of the five awards. The finalists were announced at a press conference by frequent Autoblog contributor and co-chair of the awards, Matt Davis (above).
The finalists for the overall title of 2014 World Car of the Year are the Audi A3, the BMW 4 Series and the Mazda3. The World Luxury Car of the Year will be either the Bentley Flying Spur, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class or the Land Rover Range Rover Sport, while the Performance Car of the Year will be awarded to the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, the Ferrari 458 Speciale or the Porsche 911 GT3 (which, um, yeah...).

Cars selling highest above MSRP and lowest below MSRP

Automakers have returned to offering incentives and promoting new vehicles after a few years of tight inventory and elevated prices. Despite that, prices are still higher than they should be, as a new iSeeCars study found that the average new car is priced above MSRP, though they’re slightly less painful than they were a year ago. iSeeCars found that the average new car price has been marked up to 7.2 percent above MSRP, down from 8.9 percent a year ago. Interestingly, the five most overpriced cars came from two premium brands, while four of the five priced the lowest below MSRP were EVs. New cars selling highest above MSRP Mini Hardtop: 25.5% above MSRP Porsche Taycan Sedan: 23.1% Porsche Cayenne: 21.9% Porsche Macan: 21.3% Porsche Taycan Wagon: 20.9% Cadillac CT5-V: 20% Porsche 718 Boxster: 19.9% Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid: 19.4% BMW X3 M: 19.4% Cadillac CT4-V: 19.3% Porsche, Mini, and Genesis were the three most overpriced brands overall, with Buick, Acura, and Infiniti landing as the lowest-priced brands. Electric vehicles dominated the list of the 10 most-discounted vehicles: New cars selling lowest below MSRP Hyundai Kona Electric: -4.6% VW ID.4: -3.6% Ford F-150 Hybrid: -3.3% Kia EV6: -2.5% Hyundai Ioniq 6: -2.4% Nissan Maxima: -2.2% Chrysler Pacifica PHEV: -2% Nissan Ariya: -1.9% Hyundai Ioniq 5: -1.9% VW Arteon: -1.8% Those numbers align with what we saw in the market last year, as EV sales grew, but far slower than many had hoped. iSeeCars executive analyst Karl Brauer said. (For a sense of that, you can look back at our coverage of most marked-up cars and most discounted cars from 2023.) “The market appears to have reached a saturation point for electric vehicles," Brauer said, "with both prices and sales struggling compared to a year ago. The high cost of full-size trucks and SUVs, along with the cost of fueling them in the face of inflation and reduced consumer spending power, has dampened demand for these notoriously pricey vehicles.”

Will the Mission E be the world's first must-have EV?

The Porsche Mission E concept was recently green-lit for production and has a tentative production date just before the end of the decade. With the recent onslaught of all-electric technology, the question remains: Which automaker will release the first must have all-electric EV? Tesla has clearly gained experience in testing the worldwide appetite for luxury, six-figure EVs, having sold its 100,000th vehicle in just three years and six months. But it remains to be seen if automakers can truly manufacture the ultimate green driving machine. Audi has shown its R8 e-tron but acknowledged that it will be produced in only limited quantities. On the other end of the spectrum, vehicles like the Chevy Bolt and BMW i8 are being produced for mass consumption, but will they satisfy the enthusiast who is looking for more than a commuter car? Tesla's Model S has certainly raised eyebrows and collected accolades with "ludicrous" level straight-line performance, but how well will the vehicle stand up to long-term ownership for enthusiasts? Porsche has dismissed any notions of autonomous driving in its vehicles, suggesting that it will try to stay close to its high-performance roots. This would seem to suggest that despite all the forecasted performance cred of the Mission E – 582 horsepower, 0–60 in 3.5 seconds, and a 310-mile range – potential buyers may not be getting the latest and greatest in gee-whiz-bang autonomous technology. And while Porsche has offered that future iterations of its 911 and 718 may in fact use hybrid-assisted drivetrains, the execution of a true, mass-produced, all-electric sports sedan remains to be seen. One thing is for certain, unlike start-ups like Tesla, the larger, more established manufacturers have larger budgets and more time to invest in R&D. Consumers have raised expectations from the more mature automakers in terms of reliability and the overall finish of their products. The arrival of the Mission E production car may introduce us to electric sports sedans that emphasize performance over efficiency while still eliminating its carbon footprint. Related Video: Porsche Electric porsche mission e porsche mission e concept open road