2014 North American Car And Truck/Utility Of The Year Short List Made Public

That CLA is one hot lookin car, less than 2 weeks in the US market they have already sold over 2,000 units, has not even hit all showrooms yet.

Yeah the CLA is really awesome. For 2014 NA Car of the Year I would probably give the nod to the Stingray, but the CLA is an easy runner-up. For the price, you get a really attractive car and it really doesn't look like a big COMPROMISE on 4 wheels the way, say, the BMW 1-series (in ANY trim) looks. No it looks like a legit Mercedes-Benz. The rear-end isn't as nice looking as the rest of the car but in every other respect it's a winner. Peeps will praise the Audi S3 and all that but in terms of street presence and personality I would say the CLA has way more.

For truck... I'm pullin for my Subie Forester since I purchased a turbo one after doing tons of research and test-driving all the competitors. But the new MDX has been winning a lot of folks over. The Range Rover Sport seems like a winner, too, but it's quite expensive and I do think that should factor in. I wouldn't give it to the pickups... none is breaking new ground or very clearly differentiating itself from the competition.

Saw the CLA today and agree. Not bad at all. Looks much more upscale than any of its competitors.

For the trucks, looks like there just weren't that many options to choose from. Should be the MDX or rover sport. Will have to check out the subi but living in Colorado, I tend to avoid them as I swear 1 in every 3 has one. Maybe the Sierra should get some consideration as the fuel mileage in the 5.3 is comparable or just behind the completion's v6.

Based on overall package, design, price, economy, etc, NACOTY will likely be the Mazda 6 and the NATOTY will be the Jeep Cherokee.

BTW, saw a CLA on the road yesterday and it really looked good. Didn't look entry level at all, unlike the 1 Series and previous A3.

Other than corolla, which is hopelessly outclassed in its OWN class and doesnt belong on this list, every car is a winner in its own right. This will be a tough one for the judges.

And re: the cla, I'll be the dissenter and say Im not as impressed as the posters above. But of course benz doesnt even have to try these days, since 95% of people clearly look no further than the star emblem, and dont actually notice their ugly melted soap bar designs.

Vette and RR Sport

Motor Trend just picked my Forester for 2014 SUV of the year :-D wooooooo! Who knows if others will pick it but hey maybe it's got a shot at this one too.