The Alfa Romeo 159 - sure to be one of the overall favourites - and Fiat Croma are amongst the 28 new cars that will be fighting it out for the title of 'European Car of the year 2005' over the next two months, although the new Fiat Grande Punto just misses out.

All of the contenders - who are seeking to wrest the crown away from last year's winner, Toyota's innovative Prius hybrid - are new cars which have to be available in five or more European markets, currently or within a few weeks, and each has to have the prospect of at least 5,000 yearly sales. The voting process has two stages. The first one will produce a short list of seven nominees, which will be announced in early October, while the second round will find the single winner, which will be made known on November 14th.

The stylish new executive Alfa Romeo 159 is targeting nothing short of outright victory, although the competition will be fierce this year. Early favourites include the new Toyota Yaris, Renault Clio, Suzuki Swift, Citroen C1/Peugeot 107/Toyota Ayego family, BMW 3-series and Mercedes B-class. The new Alfa 159 - which has gone on sale in the major European countries' this month - will be aiming to emulate its predecessor, the Alfa 156, which itself is a former winner of the highly prestigious award, taking the title in 1998.

Fiat Auto have a strong record in the contest, with Fiat, Alfa Romeo and Lancia combined having racked up more wins that any other carmaker. With the new Grande Punto just missing out on an entry (it arrives on the market too late this year to be included) honour rests with the new Fiat Croma - which went on sale during the early summer - and will be looking to uphold this winning this tradition. A cleverly-built multi-purpose 'stationwagon' - designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro - it will be aiming to follow in the footsteps of Fiat's most recent winner - the Panda, in 2004 (the first ever victor to be picked from A-segment) - and add its name to the roll of honour.

An expert, independent judgement of all new cars on the European market

The Car of the Year is an international award, judged by a panel of senior motoring journalists across Europe. Its object is to acclaim the most outstanding new car to go on sale in the 12 months preceding the date of the title. What is recognized worldwide as the Car of the Year award, came about to avoid confusion among ‘top car’ comparisons run by magazines and newspapers in various countries. In 1963, Fred van der Vlugt, then editor of the Dutch motoring magazine Auto Visie, reasoned that combining resources would produce a more credible result that would attract wider publicity. Van der Vlugt approached 26 professional car testers, from nine different countries, to form an expert Car of the Year jury. The formula remains the same today, nearly 40 years on, but now involves 58 Jury members representing 22 countries.

The Car of the Year is a non-profit institution, independent of the motor industry. Members receive no payment for serving on the Jury. The expenses of organising the contest are met by seven publications which promote the award and host the prizegiving by rotation. The Car of the Year trophy is presented to the winning car manufacturer in January. The manufacturer is entitled to use the title and the distinctive Car of the Year logo for the year of the award.
 

What makes a 'Car of the Year'

The object of Car of the Year is to find a single, decisive winner. The voting process is designed for that purpose, and not to provide a scale of merit of all competing cars. There are no categories, sub-divisions or class winners. Obviously this requires the Jury to assess cars of very different types and price, which means assessing them against their market rivals. The 58 members of the Car of the Year Jury all test cars as part of their journalistic work. In selecting the car of the year they use the following criteria: design, comfort, safety, economy, handling, performance, functionality, environmental requirements, driver satisfaction, and price. Technical innovation and value for money are particularly important factors. In September, the Jury Committee draws up a list of eligible cars from all the newcomers presented over the previous 12 months. Eligible cars must be essentially new models, not simply changed cosmetically or by the installation of new engine or a transmission. They are considered irrespective of their country of origin but must be available in at least five European countries at the time of voting and have an expected sales volume of 5,000 a year. The Jury then elects a short list of seven cars in a simple vote. For the second stage, each Jury member has 25 points to apportion to at least five cars, with a maximum of 10 points for any one of them, and produces a statement of justification for the vote, which is published at the time of the award presentation.

A truly international award

The Car of the Year Organizing Committee is made up of managers from the seven prominent publications around Europe which take it in turn to organize the vote, publicize and promote the contest, and hold the prizegiving ceremony. The Jury is completely independent of the Organizing Committee in matters pertaining to the award itself - the selection of eligible cars and the voting. The seven organizers of car of the Year are: Auto (Italy) , Autocar (UK), Autopista (Spain), Autovisie (Holland), L'Automobile Magazine (France), Stern (Germany) and Vi Bilägare (Sweden).

The Jury for the Car of the Year 2005 consists of 58 members, representing 22 European countries. National representation on the Jury is related to the size of the country's car market and its importance in car manufacturing. France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and Spain each have six members; other countries, proportionally fewer. Members of the Jury are elected for their personal competence, and not because of the importance of the publications they may represent. New members join the Jury at the invitation of the Jury Committee, following recommendations from regional groups. Each year, every member is required to confirm that car testing is a major part of his or her professional activity. The Jury Committee consists of the members that represent the Organising publications plus three officers elected annually. For 2006 there are, as President: Ray Hutton, motoring correspondent of The Sunday Times, UK, Vice-president: Sergio Piccione, Autovía/Autopista, Spain, and as Secretary-General: Eduardo Azpilicueta, Motorpress Ibérica, Spain.