International Van of the Year 2022: Renault Kangoo and Mercedes Citan Double Winners

At the Solutrans 2021 trade fair in Lyon, the new Renault Kangoo Van and the Mercedes-Benz Citan were jointly awarded as winners of the "International Van of the Year Award 2022" (IVOTY). The presentation of the prestigious award for the best innovation in the transporter segment took place during the Solutrans Gala Dinner on November 17 in front of 900 guests in Eurexpo Hall 2.2. The award presentation to the German representatives of the two manufacturers occurred during the European Transport Prize for Sustainability (ETPN) ceremony hosted by HUSS-VERLAG at the Munich Freiheizhalle in front of 150 guests. The German member of the 25-member trans-European jury of specialist journalists is Johannes Reichel, head of the Test + Technology department at LOGISTRA and deputy editor-in-chief at VISION mobility from HUSS-VERLAG.

Caddy comes in 2nd place, Stellantis e-van ranks third

In the 30-year history of the International Van of the Year, it was the fourth time for both Renault and Mercedes-Benz to be honored with this title. The fifth-generation Volkswagen Caddy took the second place by a significant margin. The Stellantis Group ranked third with the electric light transporter of the Peugeot, Citroёn, and Opel brands, including the identical Toyota Proace City Electric, at a further distance.

"The philosophy and objectives of the award remain unchanged despite the high technological and innovative level that manufacturers have achieved and despite market trends. The main criterion for the International Van of the Year Award is the contribution of the vehicles to efficiency, safety, sustainability, and environmental standards in the light commercial vehicle sector. For the IVOTY 2022, both traditional diesel vans and a selection of electric vehicles (BEV) were chosen. Initially, there were 14 new vans recently launched by eleven manufacturers of light commercial vehicles so that the pan-European IVOTY jury could choose an overall winner," said Jarlath Sweeney, Chairman of the IVOTY.

During the evaluation of the new Kangoo and Citan, the jury was informed about the long-standing cooperation project between the French and German car manufacturers, where each brand contributed original features to the development program, resulting in two vehicles with distinct characteristics. For example, the "Open Sesame" doors without a B-pillar in the Renault Kangoo and the integration of the Mercedes-Benz MBUX user experience and other safety features in the Citan.

High level of driver assistance

In general, the vehicle's safety and assistance level are exemplary and at Level 2 of automated driving. Additionally, a fully electric variant is following, which is expected to set new standards in terms of efficiency and range and is intended to be an immediately profitable alternative to conventional drives.

"We are very pleased that our new Mercedes-Benz Citan has been awarded the International Van of the Year Award 2022. The Citan has been completely redesigned by professionals for professionals and perfectly complements our existing portfolio of Mercedes-Benz vans. Both the panel van and the tourer offer our customers a wide range of applications and a high degree of functionality—coupled with extremely high driving comfort and the proven Mercedes-Benz safety standards. As a true Mercedes-Benz, it completes our family of transporters. A heartfelt thank you to the International Van of the Year jury for this great award," commented Marcus Breitschwerdt, Head of Mercedes-Benz Vans.

Mark Sutcliffe, SVP, LCV Business Unit, Renault Group, was also delighted with the award and stated:

"I would like to thank the entire IVOTY jury for choosing the new Renault Kangoo Van as the 'International Van of The Year 2022.' This award fills our teams with great pride. It rewards their efforts in developing and manufacturing a van that meets the highest quality standards and whose market-unique innovations aim to improve the daily lives of our professional customers. This prestigious award is the latest recognition of Renault's more than 120 years of innovation and leadership in the light commercial vehicle segment."

Mercedes-Benz had already won the IVOTY award in the years 1995, 1997, and 2005, while Renault was successful in the years 1998, 2002, and 2012, in 2012 with the first all-electric series van ever, whose successor is set to launch with the new generation for 2022.