Mahindra & Mahindra's popular off-road SUV Thar Rocks has become the Indian Car of the Year 2025 (ICOTY2025). At the same time, the MG Windsor won the Green Car of the Year 2025, the Mercedes-Benz E-Class the Premium Car of the Year 2025 and the Aprilia RS 457 sports bike the 'Indian Motorcycle of the Year' award.
The 20th edition of the award ceremony was held on January 11 in Delhi. These vehicles were selected on the basis of price, fuel efficiency, style, comfort, safety, performance, practicality, technological innovations and ergonomics. The Indian Car of the Year (ICOTY) award is considered the Oscars of the automobile industry. Last year in 2024, Hyundai Exeter won the Indian Car of the Year award.
Mahindra Thar Rocks: Beats Swift Dzire The Mahindra Thar Rocks won the title of 'Indian Car of the Year 2025' at the 20th edition of the ICOTY Awards. Maruti Suzuki Dzire is second and Maruti Suzuki Swift is third. Apart from this, BYD E-Max 7, Citroen Basalt, MG Windsor, Tata Curve EV, Tata Punch EV are included in the top 8 list.
The Mahindra Thar Rocks is a 5-door version of the company's most popular SUV Thar, which was launched in the Indian market on September 2, 2024. It got more than 1.76 lakh bookings in just one hour. The vehicle comes with both petrol and diesel powertrains with rear-wheel drive (RWD) and four-wheel drive (4WD) drivetrains.
It is priced between Rs 12.99-22.49 lakh (ex-showroom). Its petrol engine returns a mileage of 12.40 kmpl and the diesel engine returns a mileage of 15.2 kmpl. It is available in 6 variants – MX1, MX3, MX5, AX3L, AX5L and AX7L along with 7 colors – Stealth Black, Burnt Sienna, Deep Forest, Battleship Grey, Nebula Blue, Tango Red and Everest White.
MG Windsor EV: Green Car of the Year The MG Windsor EV won the Green Car of the Year award with a total of 157 points. The BMW i5 electric car was second with 99 points and the BYD Seal was third with 87 points. Apart from this, Tata Punch EV and Mini Countryman EV are also included in the list of top 5 cars in this category.
MG Windsor EV is India's first intelligent electric crossover utility vehicle (CUV). The MG Windsor EV comes with an IP67-rated 38kWh Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) battery, which offers a range of 332km on a full charge. It has a permanent magnet synchronous motor with 134bhp of power and 200Nm of torque.
The price of the MG Windsor EV for the base Excite model is Rs. 13.50 lakh, for the mid-spec exclusive variant at Rs. 14.50 lakh and for the top-end Essence model Rs. 15.50 lakhs. For those opting for battery-as-a-service, the price is Rs. 9.99 lakh to Rs. 11.99 lakhs upto. These are ex-showroom prices.
Mercedes-Benz E-Class: Premium Car of the Year The new Mercedes-Benz E-Class won the Premium Car of the Year award. The BMW 5 Series finished second and the Kia Carnival third. Apart from this, luxury cars like BMW M5, Mercedes-Benz EQS, Mini Cooper S, BMW i5 and BYD Seal are included in this category.
The E-Class is available in two variants. petrol-powered E 200 and diesel-powered E 220d. The E 200 has a 1,999CC 4 cylinder turbocharged engine. The E 220d has a 1950cc 4 cylinder turbo-diesel engine. Both variants come with a 48V mild-hybrid system. The car comes with a 9-speed automatic transmission.
Aprilia RS 457: Indian Motorcycle of the Year The Aprila RS 457 received the award at the 18th edition of the Indian Motorcycle of the Year (IMOTY). In this category, Bajaj Freedom 125 CNG bike is second and Hero Extreme 125R is third. This category includes various segments like premium commuter, sport bike, modern classic cruiser, scrambler and street naked.
The Aprilia RS 457 sports bike comes with an aggressive design with clip-on handlebars, underbelly exhaust and split LED headlamps. Its 457cc parallel-twin engine generates 46.9bhp and 43Nm of torque. The engine comes mated to a 6-speed gearbox with assist and slipper clutch for transmission.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
