The Nissan Qashqai has been named Continental Irish Car of the Year 2015 by the Irish Motoring Writers’ Association. The award was presented at a ceremony in The Marker Hotel, Dublin, hosted by Anton Savage and with guest of honour Irish football manager Martin O’Neill. The prestigious award was gratefully received by James McCarthy, the CEO of Nissan Ireland.

The Qashqai won with the overall award ahead of the Mercedes-Benz C-Class and Peugeot 308. This was the result of a points system awarded by the IMWA jury based on factors such as innovation, space, comfort, safety, build quality, on the road performance and value for money.

Winners of the Continental Irish Car of the Year categories were:

• Small Car of the Year - Hyundai i10
• Compact Car of the Year -  Peugeot 308
• Medium Car of the Year - Nissan Qashqai
• Large Car of the Year - Nissan X-Trail
• Executive Car of the Year - Mercedes-Benz C-Class
• Sports/Performance Car of the Year - Alfa Romeo 4Cn
• Van of the year - Ford Transit