The Car of the Year awards was started in 2002 by a group of automotive journalists mostly from the editorial team of the Cars, Bikes & Trucks section of the New Sunday Times.  The event was sponsored by Aideah Communication Sdn Bhd which at that time provided the editorial and marketing services of the Cars, Bikes & trucks section to the New Straits Times.

The idea behind the Car of the Year awards programme was to select the best cars available on the market according to the opinion of automotive journalists and to publish a guide for readers.  The Car of the Year became an annual event except 2020-2022 when the Covid19 pandemic intervened.

When the founder of the event, Yamin Vong, decided to resume the event in 2023 sponsored by Cars Bikes Trucks Media Sdn Bhd, the panel of judges included the first lady automotive journalist.  Another change was that over the years, the event has attracted some copies and for 2023, the event was re-branded Malaysia Car of the Year.

The 2024 Car of the Year, 20th anniversary, the automotive market will be split into a minimum of 18 categories.

The objective of MCOTY is to provide a guide to car buyers and to recognize the car manufacturers for their achievements in making a car that people want.

The judges are subject matter experts and serve on a voluntary basis.