The finalists for the North American Car and Truck/Utility of the Year 2016 awards have been announced. Interestingly, four out of the six vehicles are from Japan. Finalists for the car of the year award are the Chevrolet Malibu, Honda Civic and Mazda Miata MX-5. The finalists for the North American Truck/Utility of the Year are the Honda Pilot, Nissan Titan XD and Volvo XC90. It looks like it's going to be a tough decision and with only one sports car in the running, our vote is for the MX-5.

Unlike other awards, the NACTOY results are decided by an independent jury consisting of 53 automotive journalists in the US and Canada. The vehicles are judged upon the benchmarks the vehicles have set in its segments for safety, design, innovation, handling, driver satisfaction and value. The results will be displayed and the winners will be named during a new conference at the Detroit Motor Show on January 11.