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2011 Middle East Motor Awards winners at Sharjah Expo

2011 Middle East Motor Awards winners at Sharjah Expo

by Mashfique Hussain Chowdhury. November 3, 2011.


The most prestigious auto award in the Middle East, with the coveted ‘Car of the Year’ honour as well as individual category winners, the results for the Middle East Motor Awards (MEMA) were announced at a ceremony held at Expo Centre Sharjah on November 3, 2011.

The 2011 “Car Of The Year” award went to the deserving Volvo S60, beating out the Jeep Grand Cherokee and the Kia Optima, the latter two incidentally winning the “Best Midsize SUV” and the “Best Midsize Sedan” awards respectively. Other notable category winners include the Volkswagen Golf R as the “Best Premium Sub-Compact”, the Nissan 370Z Roadster as the “Best Sports Convertible”, the Ford Mustang as the “Best Sports Car”, the Hyundai Accent as the “Best Small Car”, the Kia Sportage as the “Best Small SUV”, the Dodge Charger as the “Best Large Sedan”, and the Porsche 911 GTS as the “Best Premium Sports Car”, among others.

Mohammad Ben Sulayem, Vice-President of FIA Middle East and President of the Automobile and Touring Club UAE, in the presence of Mr. Saif Mohammed Al Midfa, Director-General of Expo Centre Sharjah, handed over the awards to the winning car manufacturers. Mohammed Ben Sulayem is also the Official Patron of MEMA.

The awards involved a panel of distinguished automotive journalists, professional race drivers and off road experts (and me). The nomination and judging process for the second edition of the Awards lasted well over eight months with each jury member required to fill in individual scorecards for all the nominated vehicles. The judging criteria was based on various technical and consumer aspects such as vehicle design, handling, safety features, emotional appeal, value for money and more. All the scores were tallied and the vehicles with the maximum points were awarded the prestigious titles.

“MEMA is the most coveted and prestigious award in the Middle East. It is also the most credible award of its kind, judged by 19 highly sought-after automotive experts from 10 countries, including Lebanon, Oman, Jordan, Egypt, Bahrain, Syria, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. It is also the ultimate recognition for vehicles in various categories,” said Mr. Al Midfa.

The Middle East Motor Awards, possibly the only independent award of the regional automotive industry, is organized by Expo Centre Sharjah with the support of Sharjah Chamber of Commerce & Industry. The first edition of the Middle East Motor Awards was held along with the Sharjah Auto Show in 2010 and the next edition of the Awards will be held during the 11th edition of the show on November 28, 2012.

Winners at the 2011 Middle East Motor Awards


Best Sub Compact: Hyundai Accent


Best Small Sedan: Hyundai Elantra


Best Mid Size Sedan: Kia Optima


Best Large Sedan: Dodge Charger


Best Executive Sedan: Audi A6


Best Performance Sedan: BMW M3


Best Compact SUV: Kia Sportage


Best Mid Size SUV: Jeep Grand Cherokee


Best Luxury SUV: Land Rover Range Rover


Best Performance SUV: Porsche Cayenne Turbo


Best Truck: Ford F-150


Best Sports Car: Ford Mustang


Best Premium Sports Car: Porsche 911 GTS


Best Sports Convertible: Nissan 370Z


Best Premium Sports Convertible: Audi R8 Spyder


Best Premium Sub Compact: VW Golf R


Best Premium Sports Sedan: Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class


Best Luxury Car: Jaguar XJ


Best Premium Luxury Car: Rolls-Royce Ghost Extended Wheelbase


Best Supercar: Lamborghini Aventador


CAR OF THE YEAR: Volvo S60

About the author

Mashfique Hussain Chowdhury

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Comments

  1. fair stuff! 🙂

  2. All deserving 🙂

  3. Koreans took over the sub compact, small and mid size sedan. And compact SUV too. Totally worth it. 😉

  4. I was right…kia sportage!

  5. 4 out 20 titles for kia-hyundai..awesome!

  6. The Best Luxury Car should have been the Audi A8, not the Jaguar XJ …

  7. Greaaaaaaaat news

    Audi appearing twice on the list.

    Chowdhury will have some sleepless nights

  8. ok i’m convinced…i will buy kia optima.

  9. go KIA!

  10. continuous winning streak for the kia sportage…best compact suv in australia, canada, south africa, uk and now in the middle east!

  11. PS did any body notice no toyota? honda?

  12. I guess this is a victory for Europeans cars. Most are European.

  13. LOL..at the first few scrolls i thought it’s all won by hyundai-kia. they nailed it this time. I mean the real experts voted for them as the best. so no more judging by badge people

  14. no Japanese cars

  15. GOLF R!!!! Pocket Rocket 😀

  16. Alright so kia sportage it is…must be a really good car to beat the competition. i’m still hesitant but i’ll give it a test drive before i buy!

  17. Y There is no mazda6 😉

  18. Now that the experts already welcomed the Koreans…will they do the same to the chinese…?

  19. I suppose my hyundai tucson is also as good as the Sportage since they have the same parts..except the looks of course.

  20. @aries

    some difference, sportage has better handling and stronger sheet metal…..

  21. I guess the basic KIA SPORTAGE priced at 65 000 is a good deal, considering the award it got.

    Also thanks PRADO for the description that Sportage have better handling.

    Now I know what I will save my next car for.

  22. Can somebody explain about Volvo S60 car of the on what basis ? 😉

  23. Is Kia Sporatage resale good?

  24. Why is everybody talking about kia sportage only?!!!

  25. really no lamborghiny comment

  26. My family owns both the Range Vogue and Lexus LX570. The vogue doesnt come anywhere close to the luxyry features that the LX can provide. Even when you look at the price, i got LX for 350,000 and the Vogue for 365,000. Have no clue on what basis this vote was made

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