One of the most prestigious honours given out at one of the world's more influential auto shows is going to a Windsor-built vehicle.
The 2026 Dodge Charger, built at the Windsor Assembly Plant, was named the North American Car of the Year (NACOTY) on Wednesday morning at the Detroit Auto Show.
Dodge CEO Matt McAlear was on hand at Huntington Place to accept the award.
It is the latest honour for the muscle car. Since early December 2025, the Charger has also been named the Detroit Free Press Car of the Year, the 2026 Car of the Year in this year's TopGear.com U.S. Car Awards, and the Detroit News' 2025 Vehicle of the Year.
The Charger won out over two other finalists, the Honda Prelude and the Nissan Sentra.
"With SIXPACK twin-turbo muscle and electrified Daytona performance, the all-new Charger delivers power and innovation across Dodge’s multi-energy lineup," read a tweet from Stellantis North America's official X account.
Production began at Windsor Assembly last month on the two-door Charger Scat Pack. The plant also builds the Chrysler Pacifica and Grand Caravan minivans, and the all-electric Dodge Charger Daytona Scat Pack.
In the Truck of the Year category, Ford came out on top once again with the Maverick Lobo. It beat out two Dodge pickups, the Ram 1500 Hemi and the Ram 2500.
For the Utility Vehicle of the Year, the winner was the Hyundai Palisade. It outperformed the Lucid Gravity and the Nissan Leaf.
Auto industry luminaries and hundreds of journalists are in Detroit this week for vehicle reveals and media previews.
The Detroit Auto Show's annual charity preview is Friday evening, with the public show opening Saturday.
