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2021 TEXAS AUTO ROUNDUP RESULTS 


As part of TAWA’s efforts to serve the automotive journalists members who cover the automotive industry, more than 50 TAWA members and 60-plus manufacturer representatives from throughout the nation meet each spring for a two-day evaluation of the industry’s latest compact cars, sedans, and top performance cars as well as CUVs, activity vehicles, vans, and green vehicles. Manufacturers covet the prestigious awards they earn and often mention the honors in their promotional material.

TOP AWARDS


Family Vehicle of Texas: 2021 Chrysler Pacifica


Performance Vehicle of Texas: 2021 Toyota Supra


Luxury Vehicle of Texas: 2021 Lexus LC 500


Green Vehicle of Texas: 2021 Volkswagen ID.4


TAWA Names 2021 Auto Roundup Winners 

Houston, TX Wednesday, May 19, 2021 9:30 AM | Amy Plemons Communications, VP


Houston, TX – May 19, 2021 – The Texas Auto Writers Association is pleased to announce the award winners of the 2021 TAWA Texas Auto Roundup. The awards were announced in partnership with the Houston Summer Auto Show on May 19, 2021.

Forty automotive journalists evaluated 35 vehicles at this year’s event held at the Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth on April 19-20, 2021. TAWA members evaluated vehicles based on their interior, exterior, value, performance and personal appeal.

This year the main award categories were Family Vehicle of Texas, Performance Vehicle of Texas, Luxury Performance Vehicle of Texas and a newly elevated category of Green Vehicle of Texas. An additional nine category awards, two feature awards and four merit awards were also awarded.

“The Texas Auto Writers Association congratulates all of the title and category winners, and thanks all of our automotive members and partners for joining us at the 2021 Auto Roundup,” said TAWA President Kristin Shaw. “Everyone in attendance was happy to have the opportunity to drive and network at the Texas Motor Speedway.”

Like the 2020 Texas Truck Rodeo held last fall, the spring Auto Roundup was held amid strict health and safety protocols that included requiring face masks, sanitizing vehicles between drives and creating a two-wave event to limit the number of journalists present at one time.

The Chrysler Pacifica was named the Family Vehicle of Texas, its fifth consecutive win since the nameplate was reintroduced in 2016 as a 2017 model. The Auto Roundup was not held in 2020 due to the pandemic.

Toyota and Lexus each took home an overall award. The Toyota Supra was named Performance Vehicle of Texas and the Lexus LC 500 took the Performance Luxury Vehicle of Texas crown.

“A commitment to excellence in engineering, design and performance is something that both Toyota and Lexus takes to heart, and we are proud of these two vehicles for leading the pack and competition,” said Greg Thome, Senior Manager, TMNA Corporate Communications. “We are especially honored to receive this recognition here in our home state of Texas.”

TAWA elevated the former Green Vehicle category to major award status, given the growth in electrified vehicles. The Green Vehicle of Texas award went to a newcomer, the new all-electric Volkswagen ID.4.

“It’s a great honor that ID.4 has been named the Green Vehicle of Texas,” said Matthew Renna, vice president E-mobility and innovation, Volkswagen of America. “Having organizations like Texas Auto Writers Association educate the public on our brand’s electric future – and EVs in general – is valuable to the transition to electrification.”

The Texas Auto Writers Association wishes to thank our generous sponsor Blink Charging for its support of this year’s event. TAWA also thanks our participating members, automakers and press fleets for their support of this event and vigilance in adhering to safety protocols.

"In what has been a challenging past year for the automotive industry, we applaud the continued efforts by automakers to continually enhance their lineups focusing on user-friendly design, technology and safety,” said Shaw. “In many respects, since the pandemic began, vehicles are more important than ever and those represented at the Auto Roundup are all deserving of applause."

OVERALL AWARDS

     FAMILY VEHICLE OF TEXAS: Chrysler Pacifica

     PERFORMANCE VEHICLE OF TEXAS: Toyota Supra

     LUXURY PERFORMANCE VEHICLE OF TEXAS: Lexus LC 500

     GREEN VEHICLE OF TEXAS:  Volkswagen ID.4

CATEGORY AWARDS

    BEST MINIVAN: Chrysler Pacifica

    PERFORMANCE SEDAN: Dodge Charger

    LUXURY CAR ($40,000-$65,000) Genesis G80

    LUXURY CAR ($65,000-$100,000): Lexus LC 500

    PERFORMANCE COUPE: Toyota Supra

    MIDSIZE CAR: Volkswagen Arteon

    COMPACT VEHICLE: Mazda3 Hatchback Turbo

    MIDSIZE CUV: Nissan Rogue

    LUXURY CUV: Genesis GV80

FEATURE AWARDS

    BEST NEW FEATURE: Chrysler FamCam

    BEST NEW INTERIOR: Chrysler Pacifica Pinnacle

MERIT AWARDS (based on calculated points)

    BEST VALUE: TIE

       Dodge Challenger

        Lexus IS 350

    BEST INTERIOR: Lexus LC 500

    BEST EXTERIOR: Lexus LC 500

    HIGHEST PERSONAL APPEAL: Lexus LC 500

Texas Auto Roundup Images

All event photography provided by Kevin McCauley. Additional event images can be found here. All images are for editorial use only and should be credited to Kevin McCauley/ Capturing the Machine. For commercial use, please contact Kevin McCauley/capturingthemachine.com.

About TAWA

The Texas Auto Writers Association was founded in 1987 by automotive journalists who wanted to provide an avenue for professional growth, development, and networking. These professionals sought to create an automotive event that was unique to Texas, and the result was the TAWA Truck Rodeo. Since 1993, Truck Rodeos have been held in San Antonio, Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, Granbury and Spring Branch, Dripping Springs and most recently at the Star Hill Ranch in Bee Cave, Texas.

In 2003, TAWA created an event for sedans, sports cars, and other vehicles not eligible for the Truck Rodeo. The Texas Auto Roundup, as the event is called today, returned in 2021 after being cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic. For more information, visit www.texasautowriters.org.

Media Contact: Amy Plemons, amplemons.tvproducer@gmail.com

PAST AUTO ROUNDUP RESULTS

FULL RESULTS

MID-SIZE CAR

Winner: Volkswagen Arteon


LUXURY CAR $40-65,000

Winner: Genesis G80


Luxury Car $65-100,000 

Winner: Lexus LC 500 Convertible


PERFORMANCE SEDAN

Winner: Dodge Charger


PERFORMANCE COUPE

Winner: Toyota Supra


COMPACT Vehicle

Winner: Mazda3 Hatch Turbo


Mid-Size CUV

Winner: Nissan Rogue


Luxury CUV 

Winner: Genesis GV80


MINIVAN

Winner: Chrysler Pacifica


GREEN VEHICLE

Winner: Volkswagen ID.4


BEST New Feature 

Winner: Chrysler Pacifica FamCAM Interior Camera


BEST NEW INTERIOR

Winner: Chrysler Pacifica Pinnacle Interior




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