The Fiat Grande Punto has made it to the final shortlist of three cars in the 2007 World Car Design of the Year voting, with the winner set to be announced at the New York Auto Show early next month. The Grande Punto had made it to the final ten of the World Car of the Year (WCOTY) awards but missed out on making it to the last three, instead though it reached the final stage of the World Car Design of the Year section where it now faces a run-off with the Audi TT and Citroen C4 Picasso. The Grande Punto has reaffirmed its popularity with car buyers - it is Europe's best-selling car so far this year.

Cars eligible for the 2007 World Car Design of the Year award are taken from the list of World Car candidates. A design panel consisting of four highly respected design experts was asked to first review each candidate, and then establish a short-list of recommendations for the jury. The design experts were: Silvia Baruffaldi (Managing Editor, Auto & Design magazine), Peter Brock (designer, Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe), Robert Cumberford (design critic, Automobile and Auto & Design magazines) and Akira Fujimot (Editor-in-Chief, Car Styling magazine). Jurors then voted on the panel’s recommendations. The top three design finalists are, in alphabetical order, the Audi TT, the Citroen C4 Picasso and the Fiat Grande Punto.

World Car of the Year (WCOTY) is a major automotive awards program which is initiated by, organised by, and conducted by automotive journalists drawn from all over the world. "From the outset, those of us involved in making it a reality have done so in the context of one over-riding priority," says the WCOTY organisers, adding: "We are dedicated to ensuring that it is carried out with the utmost objectivity, credibility, and integrity."

The WCOTY has no affiliation with, nor is it is any way influenced by any publication, auto show, automaker, or other commercial enterprise. It is administered by a non-profit corporation, under the guidance of a Steering Committee of distinguished automotive journalists from Asia, Europe, and North America. In that way, it draws on the experience and expertise already developed by various other award programs throughout the world. It is intended to complement, not compete with those existing national and regional COTY awards, which are inherently different in scope. By its nature, WCOTY also includes some vehicles that may be unavailable in individual regions, and excludes others whose availability may be limited to those regions.

The WCOTY winners will be announced at a press conference in New York in just under two weeks time. Kicking off the springtime selling season, the 2007 New York International Auto Show will feature an impressive collection of cutting-edge design and remarkable innovation. More than four floors of displays from the world’s automakers will feature the newest vehicles and futuristic concept cars. More than 1,000 cars and trucks will be on display at the Javits Center, filling 846,000 square feet of exhibit space. In addition, dozens of World and North American vehicle debuts are expected at the Show. NYIAS is owned and produced by the Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association.