As with prior events, in order to be a nominee, the contenders had to be new vehicles available now or before the end of this year in five or more European markets, and each has to have the prospect of a minimum of 5,000 annual sales.
“The jury acknowledged today that the Nissan LEAF is a breakthrough for electric cars. Nissan LEAF is the first EV that can match conventional cars in many respects”, said Håkan Matson, President of the Jury, Car of the Year.
The Giulietta came in second with 248 points, while the Opel/Vauxhall Meriva took the bronze, with 244 points.
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Our summary presents the remaining candidates in alphabetical order, with the winner set to be announced on November 29. We'd really like to know which of the seven cars would get your vote, though, so comment away below.
The finalists for the 2009 North American Car and Truck of the Year Awards were announced today. All in all, 14 passenger cars and 11 trucks and SUVs have been nominated for the respective awards. Among the finalists for the Car of the Year award is the Hyundai Genesis -the first ever Korean model to make it to the finals, the Nissan GT-R, the Audi A4, the Dodge Challenger, the Jaguar XF and the Pontiac G8. Finalists for the 2009 North American Truck of the Year award include the Dodge Ram, the BMW X6 and the Subaru Forester.In order to be eligible for the awards, the vehicles must be "all-new" or "substantially changed" from the previous year model. From now and the opening of Detroit Show, 50 journalists from the United States and Canada who represent magazines, television, radio, newspapers and web sites, will vote ranking the finalists with the winners set to be announced at the show's first press conference on Sunday, Jan. 11.
2009 North American Car of the Year nominees
- Audi A4
- BMW 1 Series
- Cadillac CTS-V
- Dodge Challenger
- Ford Flex
- Honda Fit
- Hyundai Genesis
- Jaguar XF
- Lincoln MKS
- Mazda 6
- Nissan GT-R
- Pontiac G8
- Toyota Venza
- Volkswagen Jetta TDI
2009 North American Truck of the Year nominees
- BMW X6
- Chevrolet Traverse
- Dodge Ram
- Ford F-150
- Honda Pilot
- Infiniti FX35/50
- Kia Borrego
- Mercedes-Benz ML320 BlueTEC
- Nissan Murano
- Subaru Forester
- Volkswagen Tiguan
For the first time in 22 years, a General Motors vehicle has been voted 'Car of the Year' (COTY) in Europe. The brand-new Opel insignia gathered a total of 321 points beating the second Ford Fiesta by the narrowest possible margin - a solitary point. The Insignia is the third Opel / Vauxhall model to be awarded with the COTY after the Kadett (Vauxhall Astra in the UK) scooped the award in 1985 with the Omega (Vauxhall Carlton) following in 1987. The COTY jury, which is made up of 59 senior motoring journalists from 23 European countries gave the VW Golf VI a total of 223 points placing it third of the contest's seven finalists.
"This is the closest COTY competition for years," comments Ray Hutton, president of the 59-strong jury of senior motoring journalists. "Car of the Year has often been decided narrowly, but it is eight years since another Ford, the Mondeo, was beaten by a single point by Alfa Romeo's 147." To underscore the closeness of the 46-year-old competition, the Vauxhall/Opel Insignia received most votes from 20 of the international jurors, while the Fiesta was placed first by 19 of them.
Points allotted by journalists to the other COTY finalists were Citroen C5 198, Alfa Romeo MiTo 148, Skoda Superb 144 and Renault Megane 121 points.
For the record, the competition's first stage was in October, when jurors chose seven finalists from a total of 37 contenders. In order to be eligible for COTY, a car must be launched within the past 12 months and has to be available in at least five European countries - which is why the Toyota iQ didn't take part in this year's competition as European sales start in January 2009.
COTY 2009
Opel/Vauxhall Insignia - 321 Points
Ford Fiesta - 320 Points
Volkswagen Golf VI - 223 Points
Citroen C5 - 198 Points
Alfa Romeo MiTo - 148 Points
Skoda Superb - 144 Points
Renault Megane - 121 Points
The world's smallest four-seater passenger car -or so Toyota claims, the iQ, has won the 2008 Japan Car of the Year award. Toyota's new proposal in the minicar segment that will most likely come to the States as a Scion (click here for details) triumphed over its antagonists scoring more than double the points of the second placed Citroen C5, receiving top marks from 39 of the 65 jurors who voted.
Surprisingly, Japan's own Nissan GT-R finished in third place followed by the new Audi A4 and Jaguar XF. Even more surprising is the fact that Fiat's highly acclaimed 500 minicar that was included in this year's ballot finished 7th. We remind you that the 500 won the European Car of the Year award in 2007.
Unfortunately we won't have the chance to see if the iQ manages to have the same effect on European journalists as the Toyota mini is not eligible to take part in the competition as sales in Europe do not start until January 2009, past the cut-off for the European COTY for this year (see the seven finalists here).
Results of Japan Car of the Year 2008
1.
Toyota iQ
526 points
2.
Citroën C5
223 points
3.
Nissan GT-R
201 points
4.
Audi A4/A4 Avant
180 points
5.
Jaguar XF
115 points
6.
Daihatsu Tanto
100 points
7.
Fiat 500
90 points
8.
Honda Freed
62 points
9.
Mazda Atenza
60 points
10.
Suzuki Wagon R
37 points
11
Subaru Exiga
31 points
The countdown has began for the announcement of the European 'Car of the Year 2009' winner as the organizers released the shortlist with the seven finalists. The cars that made it to the final round of the 2009 COTY are: Alfa Romeo MiTo, Citroen C5, Ford Fiesta, Opel/Vauxhall Insignia, Renault Megane, Skoda Superb and Volkswagen Golf VI. The COTY jury, which is made up of 59 senior motoring journalists from 23 countries around Europe will reveal the winner on November 19.The COTY's organizing committee also released a statement in concern of recent news stories that gave the result of a 'European Car of the Year'. According to the committee, this contest was a national one staged by the Italian Motor Journalists Association and had no connection whatsoever with the 'Car of the Year'.
COTY PREVIOUS WINNERS
- 2008 -- FIAT 500
- 2007-- FORD S-MAX
- 2006 -- RENAULT CLIO
- 2005 -- TOYOTA PRIUS
- 2004 -- FIAT PANDA
- 2003 -- RENAULT MÉGANE
- 2002 -- PEUGEOT 307
- 2001 -- ALFA ROMEO 147
- 2000 -- TOYOTA YARIS
- 1999 -- FORD FOCUS
- 1998 -- ALFA ROMEO 156
- 1997 -- RENAULT MÉGANE SCENIC
- 1996 -- FIAT BRAVO / BRAVA
- 1995 -- FIAT PUNTO
Ford’s S-Max managed to grab the first place in the COTY awards this year with a margin of only two points from the Opel/Vauxhall Corsa. Ford should feel proud for another reason too as the S-Max is only the second MPV (after the Renault Scenic in 1996) in the contest’s 44-year history to win the award. Having seen and driven all (with the exception of Citroen’s C4 Picasso) I agree 100% with the S-Max’s first place as it’s a truly driver orientated MPV packed with style and practicality. But, I totally disagree with the Opel Corsa’s second place. I can’t understand what they found in it to give it 233 points (!). Stylish yes, but that’s about the only attribute I can find in it in comparison with the other cars in the B-Segment category. What so new in the Corsa? In what way is it better than the Renault Clio for example?
I also disagree with the 5th placing of the Civic (5door Euro version) that managed to gather a mere 148 points. Its spacious interior is dressed in an outer-space design (in and out) and it has powerful but economical engines. In other words it brings a breeze of fresh air in a conventional, not to say boring category without loosing any of the assets that come with a C-Segment hatch.
Round one is over for the COTY 2007. But instead of having 7 nominees, this year we're going to have 8 cars compete (from a total of 41 contenders) for the first place as there was a tie in points for the seventh place. For the final vote, the 58 members of the jury will have to apportion 25 points among at least five cars, providing a written justification of their choice. If you're asking for my personal opinion, I think that the three most prominent players for the first place are the Citroen C4 Picasso, Ford SMax and Honda Civic. The result will be announced on November 13th, 2006.Technorati: Car+of+the+Year, 2007, COTY, Carscoop, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles
