The new Alfa MiTo has collected its first major award as it has been voted Auto Europa 2009 by the L’Unione Italiana Giornalisti dell’Automobile (Uiga) beating off competition from the second-placed Lancia Delta and the Ford Fiesta in third.

The new Alfa MiTo has collected its first major award as it has been voted Auto Europa 2009 by the L’Unione Italiana Giornalisti dell’Automobile (Uiga). Each year the Italian automotive journalist's union vote for their car of the year, and in awarding the prestigious prize to Alfa Romeo's new coupé it makes it back to back wins for the Fiat Group, as the Fiat 500 claimed the title last year.

After amassing 462 points, the Alfa MiTo, which was launched this summer and has now gone on sale across most of the major Western European markets, ran out as the clear winner, finishing up more than 100 points in front of the second-placed Lancia Delta, making it a clean sweep of the top-two positions for Fiat Group Automobiles. Third place in the Italian journalists' voting went to the new Ford Fiesta, which collected 295 points, while the final top six was rounded out by the Citroën C5, Jaguar XF and Volvo XC60. Three more Fiat Group products also made it onto the voting scoreboard: Maserati's luxury sports GT, the GranTurismo, was ninth, one place behind Fiat's innovative new Fiorino-based Qubo people-carrier, while Iveco's new Campagnola jeep was fourteenth.

The Alfa MiTo's comprehensive continues a strong record for the Fiat Group in the Auto Europa contest, previous winners of the prestigious title, which started in 1987, to be drawn from the Group are the Alfa 164 (1988), Fiat Tipo (1989), Fiat Cinquecento (1993), Fiat Punto (1995), Fiat Bravo/Brava (1996), Alfa Romeo 156 (1998), Alfa Romeo 166 (1999), Fiat Panda (2004), Fiat Grande Punto (2007) and Fiat 500 (2008).

Auto Europe 2009 final points: