The Fiat 500 tugged at the heart strings to win the coveted car of the year title, writes Irish jury member Michael McAleer
In hindsight, it was never really in question. Fiat's 500 was always favourite to take the Car of the Year title. While some of us questioned whether it was actually a new car, considering it's built on the Panda platform, even we couldn't resist its charm.
And now it has walked away with the most prestigious motoring accolade around. Individual publications offer their annual motoring preferences at this time of year, but the Car of the Year title is the big one. Chosen by 58 jurors from 22 countries across Europe, it's the title car firms covet the most. And for only the second time since the awards started in 1963, a small city car has taken the title.
Judging by the reasons given by colleagues on the jury, it seems that the Fiat won our votes for achieving the time travelling retro move with a level of success not quite matched by BMW's Mini and certainly not by VW's Beetle. The 500 has all the charm of the original 1950s version, a cool image that appeals to young buyers, and a safety level that's on a par with any modern car on the road at present.
There are others out there with retro appeal. However, the 500 is not only cool on the outside, but adorable from the dash to the tailgate.
A mass of colour options for the interior make the cabin somewhere fun to be in, while the build quality and tactile feel make it the best interior Fiat has ever built.
If we had any quibbles about the 500 it was in the fact that the underpinnings were not new. Despite its unique look, the technology underneath actually comes from the current Panda range.
That's the reason why some of us turned to the more original - and dynamic - Ford Mondeo when it came to voting. For the same reason, I gave the weight-saving Mazda2 a joint second score with the 500.
During various test sessions - including a week-long session on the deserted roads of northern Denmark in September - jurors put the cars through their paces.
A mix of public roads and an old airfield formed the testbed for judging, along with long sessions with engineers and designers from the individual manufacturers, who pitched the reasons why their creations are more unique and innovative than the rest of the new cars launched that year.
Along with testing the cars already launched here, we had the chance to pit the upcoming models against Irish roads.
For nearly two weeks I drove the little 500 in the daily slog of Dublin traffic. As expected, the allure of smart styling started to wear thin. Yet the 500's image didn't dissipate to reveal a dull or faulty car. The mechanics and motoring ability of the 500 are sound. And inside it always retained its charm.
When it came to voting, I opted for the Mondeo for its driving ability and internal space. In the family car segment, there's nothing that matches it for all-round ability. Similarly with the Mazda2, the points were awarded for the firm's engineering ability to buck the trend of cars in this segment that are getting bigger, while sacrificing little in terms of practicality and nothing in terms of handling or performance.
In the end the 500 won out and the decision is probably one made as much with the heart as the head. This car is both unisex and income neutral, something it shares only with the Mini and perhaps the Toyota Prius these days.
It could be the first car bought by a penniless student with a large loan, or the latest car bought for cash by a wealthy suburban housewife trading out of an SUV.
Most importantly, for Fiat, it marks the end of a particularly dark period in their history. It's too early to say the bad times are over, but with finances back in the black and this award under their belt, things look a lot better than they did two years ago. Congratulations to all involved.