Now into its second year on sale in the UK, Fiat’s popular 500 city car continues to scoop top industry media awards. And the latest of these is City Car of the Year from BusinessCar magazine.

"If ever there was a sure bet for a new car to take a category win in the BusinessCar Awards then the Fiat 500 in the city car class was it," wrote the magazine in its verdict on the 500. "Ending the three-year run by the near-identical trio of Citroen C1, Peugeot 107 and Toyota Aygo, the Fiat 500 has captured hearts and minds ever since it was first revealed in 2007. Fleets have also taken to it thanks to high residual values and low emissions and overall costs. When we tested the 500 we praised its class-leading low running costs, the easy to use package and the car’s desirability. Clearly BusinessCar readers agreed. From a standing start, Fiat sold more than 2200 500s to fleet out of a total of 15,000 in 2008, and this year will see a hot Abarth version join the range, giving it a boost to fend off renewed competition from Ford’s new Ka."

The honour adds to the 500’s already impressive list of trophies which includes Car of the Year 2008, CAR Magazine Car of the Year, Fifth Gear Small Car of the Year and Auto Express Best City Car 2008. The BusinessCar Awards are the only awards in the market that are solely voted for by the readership.

“Once again the Fiat 500 has won an important industry award which we are, of course, delighted with,” adds Andrew Humberstone, managing director, Fiat Group Automobiles UK. “More than a year in and the 500 continues to show us how much the media, the industry and, most importantly, our customers love it.”

Available with a choice of three frugal, ultra-low emissions, Euro 5-ready engines:   69 bhp 1.2-litre and 100 bhp 1.4-litre petrol, or 75 bhp 1.3-litre MultiJet turbodiesel, the Fiat 500 can be ordered in three different trim levels – Pop, Sport and Lounge. With a starting price of just £8,100, the Fiat 500 represents outstanding value for money and positions the car well below its benchmark rivals. At the top end of the range, highly specified versions with a choice of the larger petrol or diesel engines cost only £10,900 – a price that includes air conditioning and alloy wheels as standard.