While we were enamoured with the colour of the BMW M2 test car, there was more to this two-door sports vehicle than its head-turning hue, meaning it takes out the performance car of the year title over tough competition.
It was what was beneath the Long Beach Blue panels of the M2 that made this car striking.
It has BMW's new 3-litre, six-cylinder inline petrol engine with M twin power turbo technology to provide 272kW of power at 6500rpm and 465Nm of torque between 1400-5560rpm, and for short bursts 500Nm of torque between 1450-4750rpm.
To cap it off, it has a top speed of 250km/h with 0-100km/h in 4.3 seconds. The M2 was paired with the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic (DCT), while paddles attached to the M style steering wheel flicked the transmission to manual mode and blipped through the gears.
Want to know more?
Read our full BMW M2 review here.
Driven Car of the Year Awards winners
Driven Car of the Year: Mercedes-Benz E-Class
Driven Compact Car of the Year: Holden Spark
Driven Small Car of the Year: Honda Civic
Driven Medium/Large Car of the Year: Skoda Superb
Driven Green Car of the Year: BMW 330e
Driven Luxury Car of the Year: Mercedes Benz E-Class
Driven Performance Car of the Year: BMW M2
Driven Small SUV of the Year: Kia Sportage
Driven Medium SUV of the Year: Volkswagen Tiguan
Driven Large SUV of the Year: Mazda CX-9
Driven Luxury SUV of the Year: Jaguar F-Pace
Driven Commercial Vehicle of the Year: Holden Colorado
Driven Bike of the Year: Yamaha MT-01