2017 North American Car, Truck, and Utility of the Year entries announced

Over 40 vehicles will compete for the 2017 North American Car, Truck, and Utility of the Year awards. If that name looks a little strange, it's because the competition added a third category.

In years past, pickup trucks, crossovers, SUVs, commercial vans, and minivans competed for the same award. That's why there were occasionally weird comparisons, like last year's competition between the Volvo XC90 and Nissan Titan XD. The new format separates pickups and commercial vans into the truck contest and CUVs, SUVs, and minivans into the utility competition.

A complete list of eligible vehicles is below, but here are a few highlights. For one, the entire list of entries has a luxurious lean. Of the 43 vehicles, nearly half of them are from premium brands. There are two eligible Bentleys – the Bentayga and Mulsanne – the Rolls-Royce Dawn, Jaguar F-Pace, Audi Q7, and the Mercedes-Benz GLS-, E-, and S-Class Maybach. The performance ranks are lofty, too, with the Audi R8, Acura NSX, Alfa Romeo Giulia, Mercedes SL- and SLC-Class, Porsche 718, and F-150 Raptor. The mainstream entries are just as comprehensive. From the Chrysler Pacifica to the Chevrolet Cruze to the Fiat 124 Spider to the Mitsubishi Mirage, NACTOY has covered an enormous price range with this year's contestants.

Of course, these are only the eligible vehicles. They'll need to run through three rounds of judging, starting in September at NACTOY's traditional Hell, MI, test drive. The Canadian and American journalists involved in the judging will announce this year's nine finalists – three in each category – on December 6. Show full PR text Cars

Acura NSX
Alfa Romeo Giulia
Audi A4
Audi R8
Bentley Mulsanne
Buick Cascada
Buick LaCrosse
Cadillac CT6
Chevrolet Bolt
Chevrolet Cruze
Fiat 124
Genesis G90
Hyundai Elantra
Infiniti Q60
Jaguar XE
Kia Cadenza
Lincoln Continental
Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan
Mercedes-Benz S550 Maybach
Mercedes-Benz SL-Class
Mercedes-Benz SLC-Class
Mini Clubman
Mitsubishi Mirage/G4
Porsche 718 Boxster and Cayman
Rolls-Royce Dawn
Toyota Prius Prime
Volvo S90

SUVs

Audi Q7
Bentley Bentayga
Buick Envision
Cadillac XT5
Chrysler Pacifica
GMC Acadia
Infiniti QX30
Kia Sportage
Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class
Jaguar F-Pace
Mazda CX-9
Nissan Armada

Trucks

Ford F-Series Super Duty pickups
Ford F-150 Raptor
Honda Ridgeline
Nissan Titan half-ton Source