Detroit Auto show: Hyundai wins North American Car of the Year with Elantra partly redesigned at Ann Arbor area tech center

The Hyundai Elantra beat the Ford Focus and Volkswagen Passat to win the coveted award, which is distributed by a group of 50 independent journalists. In 2011, the Chevrolet Volt won the award.

Hyundai’s Superior Township technical center, which employs about 170 people, conducted some calibration and testing work on the redesigned Elantra.

The award, which the automakers wield as a marketing tool, reflected a surge in quality and respect for Hyundai, said Hyundai Motor America CEO John Krafcik.

“We’re very surprised, we’re very humbled,” he said. “The Focus is an amazing car, the Passat is incredible.”

Since its redesign, the company has sold more than 200,000 Elantras, Krafcik said. The car is built at the company's manufacturing plant in Alabama.

Also at the Detroit auto show today, the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque won the North American Truck of the Year award, defeating the BMW X3 and the Honda CR-V.

Contact AnnArbor.com's Nathan Bomey at (734) 623-2587 or nathanbomey@annarbor.com. You can also follow him on Twitter or subscribe to AnnArbor.com's newsletters.