USA: Cadillac XLR and Ford F-150 named winners of 2004 ‘Car and Truck Interior of the Year’ Awards


Two of Detroit’s most important image vehicles — Cadillac’s luxurious XLR sports roadster and Ford’s all-new F-150 pickup truck — have been voted car and truck “Interior of the Year” award winners by 5,500 automotive industry executives. In addition, the Cadillac XLR’s on-board navigation unit was named the “Navigation System of the Year.”


The three awards were presented at ceremonies at the 11th annual Auto Interiors Show at Cobo Centre, Detroit.


“The selection of these particular vehicles is especially noteworthy because both represent a turning point in interior styling, functionality and quality for North American manufacturers,” said Doug Hope, group vice president of VNU Expositions, producers of the show. “Furthermore, they confirm the fact that innovative interior design and excellence in exterior styling go hand-in-hand in helping manufacturers differentiate brands and achieve sales success, since both of these vehicles are setting sales records in their respective categories.”


The car and truck Interior award criteria included appearance — based on styling, colour, material, fit and finish; functionality — based on comfort, convenience and safety; innovation — taking into consideration the “surprise and delight” factors; and overall impression of the vehicle in motion and at rest. Last year, the Cadillac CTS and the Hummer H2 won their categories.

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Navigation systems were evaluated on the basis of overall functionality, graphics, user interface and ease of use.


General Motors‘ design team did an exceptional job of packaging comfort, style and advanced technology into the highly attractive and user-friendly interior of the Cadillac XLR. The XLR certainly deserves to win ‘Car Interior of the Year’ and ‘Navigation System of the Year,'” said Hope.



Turning to the F-150: “Ford designers really did their homework to successfully create five unique, high-quality interior environments in each model in the F-150 line, and it richly deserves the ‘Truck Interior of the Year’ honours,” added Hope.


The Cadillac XLR and Ford F-150, as well as the XLR’s navigation system, were chosen by a “people’s choice” format with online voting by all 5,500 industry executives who pre-registered to attend the 2004 Auto Interiors Show. Five finalists were selected in each category, and the top vote getter in each category was the winner. The finalists were:



   Car Make/Model                Truck Make/Model           Nav System
   Cadillac XLR                         BMW X3                            BMW X3
   Chevrolet Malibu Maxx LT    Chevrolet SSR                     Cadillac XLR
   Chrysler Crossfire                  Dodge Durango Limited       Mazda RX-8
   Mazda RX-8                          Ford F-150                         Nissan Armada
   Toyota Solara SLE                 Nissan Armada                  ToyotaSolaraSLE