王者已死。王者万岁。

    在今年最受赞赏的汽车厂商排行榜上，德国大众汽车（Volkswagen）一路狂飙，成功登顶，取代了长期雄踞榜首的宝马（BMW）。投票者们显然注意到了大众集团开拓美国市场的兴趣，尤其是大众在田纳西州查特怒加市新建的装配工厂已于近日开工，而且大众的子品牌奥迪（Audi）作为一个诚意十足的竞争者，也已经开始在超高端市场上崭露头角。

    戴姆勒-梅赛德斯奔驰（Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz）位列本榜季军，该品牌已是连续三年跻身三甲，同时也进一步加速了日本厂商排名的滑衰。丰田（Toyota）的排名从去年的第七位回升到今年的第四位，但本田（Honda）仍然令人费解地继续呈下滑之势，从去年的第五名跌至第八名。日产（Nissan）作为日本汽车三巨头的老三，今年继续排名垫底。

    在美国厂商中，福特（Ford）的排名从第六小幅上升至第五，进一步巩固了它的全球竞争力。通用（General Motors）仍在努力摆脱2009年破产风暴的余波，它的排名上升了两位来到第七名。值得注意的是这张榜单上没有出现克莱斯勒（Chrysler）的影子。克莱斯勒2011年的销量表现非常抢眼，很可能使它成为下这份榜单明年的强力竞争者。

1．大众

    The king is dead. Long live the king.

    Volkswagen motored its way to the top of this year's list of the most admired automobile manufacturers, nosing out longtime winner BMW. Voters apparently took note of VW's new-found interest in the U.S. market, highlighted by the opening of an assembly plant in Chattanooga, TN, and the emergence of VW's Audi brand as a bonafide contender in the super-premium market.

    With Daimler's Mercedes-Benz holding on to its third place ranking in the survey, German manufacturers scored a trifecta -- and added more grease to the slide of Japanese automakers. Toyota regained its footing by moving up in the ranking from seventh to fourth, but Honda continued its inexplicable decline by plunging to eighth place from fifth. Nissan, the third member of the Japanese Big Three, remained anchored to the bottom of the list.

    Among American manufacturers, Ford strengthened its claim on global competitiveness by moving up one notch to fifth. And General Motors continued to shake off the lingering effects of its 2009 bankruptcy by climbing two spots to seventh. Notably absent from this year's list is Chrysler, whose sparkling sales performance in 2011 is likely to make it a strong contender in 2012.

1. Volkswagen

    大众集团去年宣称决心重新在美国市场上攫取一席之地，此言一出，各方瞩目。许多车迷嘲笑大众汽车造型死板，价格低廉，认为美国消费者不会买账。但事实上消费者并不这样想，捷达（Jetta）和帕萨特（Passat）的销量也节节攀升。大众在美国以70,000美元左右的售价发布了造型典雅的奥迪A7四门轿车后，奥迪这个品牌立刻俘获了1%最富人群的心，成为时尚潮流的引领者。

    VW got everybody's attention last year with its loudly-proclaimed determination to return to a position of influence in the U.S. market. Enthusiasts scoffed at its efforts to pander to American buyers with blander designs at lower prices, but customers didn't, and Jettas and Passats flew out of showrooms. Audi arrived as a style leader for one-percenters when it unveiled its elegant A7 four-door coupe that sells for around $70,000.