CNBC-TV18 Overdrive Awards 2016: Nominees for Premium Car of the Year

There may be a massive demand for SUVs in India in the last year but there’s also a big shift in demand and appreciation for premium small cars. This year we have five strong contenders to the crown with the most powerful being Fiat’s fire-breathing Punto Abarth which is easily the most powerful car you can buy at this price point. Then we have the Maruti Suzuki Baleno and Honda Jazz, fierce rivals within the segment and strong contenders for the CNBC-TV18 OVERDRIVE Premium Car of the Year award. On the more ‘cross’ side of things is Hyundai’s Active i20 and going a step further into the rugged territory is the Maruti Suzuki S-Cross. Maruti may claim it is more of an SUV but we believe it fits in better with the premium hatchbacks in this list. All of these cars make for convincing buys and this segment has proved to be one of the most hotly contested of all this year.

The Premium Car of the Year category will be judged by a panel of experts on a range of criteria (read more about our judging methodology here) including how well they suit the role, value for the money they demand and also how involving they are to drive. No matter the category, we at OVERDRIVE value driving involvement. A car has to put a smile on its drivers face, no matter power or price and that’s definitely one of the criteria in our judging process.

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The CNBC-TV18 OVERDRIVE Awards 2016 ceremony will be held on  December 9, 2015. Stay tuned to know what we think are the best cars and bikes of the year.

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