General 500 wins European Car of the Year 2008!

[eleganza]

The COTY results have already leaked across the internet before the official announcement on 19th November - and 500 wins

Here are the results:

1. Fiat 500 - 385
2. Mazda2 - 325
3. Ford Mondeo - 202
4. Kia Cee’d - 166
5. Nissan Qashqai - 147
6. Mercedes C-Klasse - 128
7. Peugeot 308 - 97

click here to view the news article

 

[Schwenck]

You were quick off the blocks there Eleganza!

Why can no-one keep a secret nowadays? Let's hope it's not just some mis-information from the Ford-Mazda conglomerate...

 

[KevinB]

The lucky British journalists had the chance to try ALL the cars back-to-back at Silverstone so they could make up their minds and award the points.

Does anyone have a picture of the line-up of the cars at Silverstone, or have any of the British journalists said which 500 model they were given to try....whichever one it was, it seems some of them DID NOT find it very comfortable!

JUDGE RAY HUTTON SAID:
" On the by-ways of Britain the ride is shocking and the noise of the 100 bhp 1.4 is wearing on a long journey. Better to choose the 1.2 and stay in town."

JUDGE ANDREW ENGLISH SAID IN DAILY TELEGRAPH NEWSPAPER:
"...bumpy roads showed up woeful inadequacies in the chassis...I'd need a Papal edict on compulsory days off for chiropractor."

JUDGE JOHN SIMISTER SAID:
The 500 is not perfect, with a tiresomely choppy ride on poor British roads

--------
Was it a 500 Popular, Lounge or Sport they drove I wonder?

 

[Jazzy Jase]

The lucky British journalists had the chance to try ALL the cars back-to-back at Silverstone so they could make up their minds and award the points.

Does anyone have a picture of the line-up of the cars at Silverstone, or have any of the British journalists said which 500 model they were given to try....whichever one it was, it seems some of them DID NOT find it very comfortable!

JUDGE RAY HUTTON SAID:
" On the by-ways of Britain the ride is shocking and the noise of the 100 bhp 1.4 is wearing on a long journey. Better to choose the 1.2 and stay in town."

JUDGE ANDREW ENGLISH SAID IN DAILY TELEGRAPH NEWSPAPER:
"...bumpy roads showed up woeful inadequacies in the chassis...I'd need a Papal edict on compulsory days off for chiropractor."

JUDGE JOHN SIMISTER SAID:
The 500 is not perfect, with a tiresomely choppy ride on poor British roads

--------
Was it a 500 Popular, Lounge or Sport they drove I wonder?

Oh dear. Sounds like it was a 1.4 they tested. I thought all models had the same suspension settings, so ride should be the same regardless.

If it was a 1.4 it'll have 15 inch wheels. I think only the Pop has 14 inch wheels, which should give better comfort. Dread to think what it'll be like on the optional 16s or bigger.

 

[KevinB]

Whichever one they tried, remind me to try a different version when the cars arrive in the Uk for test drive!
1.2 Popular on 14s (steelies or alloys) will do for me.

Details of how they all voted and what they all said can be found here:

http://www.caroftheyear.org/pages/Voting08.htm#

 

[ChrisUK]

If its based on the Panda I can well believe it .

 

[KevinB]

I know the 100hp Panda has stiffened suspension and bigger wheels, but the 'ordinary' Pandas on smaller wheels are OK for comfort on British roads aren't they?

I hope these COTY judges have got it wrong about the ride quality.
<We old farts need a bit of comfort>

 

[Jazzy Jase]

I hope these COTY judges have got it wrong about the ride quality.

Surely it can't be THAT bad. They've just voted it their car of the year!

 

[Ffoxy]

And no small mini-car will ever have the ride comfort of a Lexus!

Piffle... these namby pamby so-called car testers are going too far the way of Clarkson, who doesnt like anything that wont do 200mph and 0 - 60 in under 4 seconds!

 

[Schwenck]

I know the 100hp Panda has stiffened suspension and bigger wheels, but the 'ordinary' Pandas on smaller wheels are OK for comfort on British roads aren't they?

I think 'ordinary' Pandas are on the firm side, but still pretty good for a small car. The early reports from British hacks testing abroad did seem to imply it was the larger wheeled cars that had the problem.

 

[Schwenck]

Having re-read the voting grid, the fact the Panda is priced "unexpectedly affordable" seems to have been a significant influence. Quite rightly I think; of course Mercedes can make a well developed product with the premium they charge. Denounce me as an old cynic but a few weeks after the launch, can you see the price of the entry level suddenly jumping to fit better with the price of the next model, closing the current £1,400 gap? I'm sure they did pretty much the same with the 100HP...

 

[KevinB]

Denounce me as an old cynic

OK: You are an old cynic...

...BUT...​

...you could be right

To be able to say 'from £7900' is a good headline, but Fiat underestimated the popularity of the cheaper models in France when they launched the 500.

French dealers complained they were getting the expensive 500s through, but the cheaper models they had been promised were not arriving.
A cynic may have thought that was a deliberate ploy by Fiat to sell more of the expensive ones, but we wouldn't think that on here, would we.

I intend to have a look at (and a test drive in) a £7900 1.2 Popular as soon as they arrive in the UK.

That model may go up in price, but it is unlikely to come down and IMO there won't be any discounts for months and months on any of the 500s.

Make no mistake, these little cars are going to sell incredibly well in the UK for the first few months.

 

[Ms_Cinq]

French dealers complained they were getting the expensive 500s through, but the cheaper models they had been promised were not arriving. A cynic may have thought that was a deliberate ploy by Fiat to sell more of the expensive ones, but we wouldn't think that on here, would we.

The expensive ones will mainly come first, the cheaper ones later.:bang:

You wont find a base 1.2 Popular for 7900 for sale - rare as hens teeth they will be til the hype and froth of the market goes, then they will suddenly be available - you will see.