A total of thirty three cars have just been announced in the first round voting for the Car of the Year 2008 award, with the exciting new Fiat 500 being swiftly installed as the favourite by industry pundits. This number grows bigger when body versions and derivatives are considered. All of the contenders are new vehicles available in five or more European markets, currently or within a few weeks, and each has 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. The second round will find the single winner, that will be made known on November 19, 2007.

The Fiat 500 which revived the historic name, was launched in front of the world during a glittering ceremony in Turin on 4th July, exactly 50 years to the day after the iconic original model was introduced. This year's planned production run - of just under 60,000 units is already sold out - and assembly quotas are being increased at the Polish factory where it is built next year to cope with demand. On Wednesday it was announced that the Fiat 500 had been awarded a 5-star rating in crash tests carried out by EuroNCAP. Fiat has an unrivalled record in the Car of the Year awards, most recently the tiny Panda won in 2004, and in the process it became the first ever winner to be drawn from A-segment.

The biggest rivalry for outright victory this year for the 500 is expected to come from Ford's new D-segment Mondeo sedan. The Mondeo won the award in 1994 and the latest generation model has been well received by the international press who have judged it to be a very good all-rounder and a much more polished car than its recent incarnations. Also expected to seriously tilt for this most prestigious of awards are the new Mazda2 and the Peugeot 308 whose direct predecessor, the 307, won the award in 2002.

Other contenders include the Land Rover Freelander which has been receiving good reviews and will be an outsider challenger, however its hefty price tag is expected to dent any challenge. A second Fiat, the Bravo, is in the running, but with the Turin car maker focusing it efforts on the 500 in this contest the new C-segment hatchback is expected to be eliminated in the first round. Other new cars on the list this year include the Renault Twingo, Volvo V70, Skoda Fabia, Mercedes C-class, BMW X5, Nissan Qashqai, and Toyota Auris.
 

The Car of the Year 2008 jury 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 2008 there are: President: Ray Hutton, motoring correspondent of The Sunday Times, UK. Vice-president: Sergio Piccione, Autovía/Autopista, Spain. Secretary general: Eduardo Azpilicueta, Motorpress Ibérica, Spain.

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, more than 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 prize giving 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.