Every Car of the Year winner: how many do you remember?

Winners and losers from the European contest

The European Car of the Year competition was born in 1964 and has thrown up some surprising winners – and losers – over its 56 years. 

The contest sees judges from the motoring press across the continent cast their votes for the finest car released in the previous 12 months – but do you agree with their choices?

Join us as we count down the triumphs (but definitely no Triumphs) and travesties of more than half a century of the competition, from the forgettable Fiat Brava to the unforgettable Porsche 928.

1964 Rover 2000

Production run: 1963-’77

Rover’s revolutionary mid-size saloon helped create the modern executive saloon market and simultaneously introduced the until-then stuffy marque to a new, younger audience.

The brave P6 was meant to carry a jet turbine, and though that didn’t make it to market, the standard 2000cc sufficiently wowed judges to make it the inaugural winner.

1965 Austin 1800

Production run: 1964-’75

BMC’s dumpy 1800 Landcrab scooped top spot in the competition’s second year, helped by its roomy interior and the supple Hydrolastic ride from its front-drive chassis. Let’s face it, it can’t have been anything to do with the way it looked.

Arguably more important was the second-place finisher, Atobianchi’s Primula: a small front-wheel drive hatchback that was essentially a trial run for the Fiat 127. And who remembers that the original Ford Mustang cantered home in third?

1966 Renault 16

Production run: 1965-’80

Renault’s 16 hatchback was a major breakthrough in the family car sector dominated by traditional three-box saloons such as Ford’s conservative Cortina.

But did you know that Rolls-Royce’s equally forward-looking unibody Silver Shadow finished in second place, and only 17 points behind?

1967 Fiat 124

Production run: 1966-’74

Ladas were to become a laughing stock in England in the ’80s, but the car they were based on, Fiat’s 124, had been a COTY champ two decades previously.

Third place went to Jensen’s innovative FF, an Interceptor offshoot with anti-lock brakes and four-wheel drive that pre-dated Audi’s quattro by more than a decade.

1968 NSU RO80

Production run: 1967-’77

NSU’s sci-fi saloon with its rotary engine, semi-automatic gearbox and wind-cheating shape seemed like a worthy COTY winner in 1968.

Sadly that glory was soon forgotten when tales of rotor wear came to light, while fuel consumption that would make a 3-litre Capri blush was hardly a boon to sales in the midst of the 1970s oil crisis.

1969 Peugeot 504

Production run: 1968-2006

Peugeot edged out two sporting saloons, BMW’s 2500/2800 and the mostly forgotten Alfa 1750, to take top spot in ’69 – the same year it took the covers off two stunning Bertone-desiged coupé and cabriolet variants.

More than 3m examples were eventually made, with production continuing in Nigeria until as late as 2006.

1970 Fiat 128

Production run: 1969-’85

Another home-run for Fiat, which repurposed the innovative transverse, front-wheel drive mechanicals from the Autobianchi Primula.

Rather than the transmission being below the engine (like a Mini), or in front of it (like a Renault 16) the 128 had its gearbox and engine right next to each other – a setup you’ll still find today on most front-drive cars.

1971 Citroën GS

Production run: 1970-’85

By rights it should have been a Citroën 1-2 in 1971. Instead, the sensational SM coupé made do with third, while Volkswagen’s bland, three-box water-cooled K70 managed to sneak into second place.

No arguing with the little GS’ first place award, though. Power-assisted four-wheel disc brakes, hydropneumatic suspension and a slippery shape with fashionable kamm-back styling meant it really was light years ahead of its rivals.

1972 Fiat 127

Production run: 1971-’83

Fiat made it three wins in five years with a supermini that set the template for all to come, and deservedly scored more than double the points of the second-place Renault 17.

Benz’s new SL, a stone-cold classic today, trundled home in third amid judges gripes about ‘fussy detail’ and ‘ponderous’ handling.

1973 Audi 80

Production run: 1972-’78

Maybe you could argue the case for Audi’s pleasant, but rather ordinary 80 picking up top honours in a bad year – but 1972 was anything but bad!

There was the excellent Renault 5, which came in second, and in third place, Alfa’s Alfetta, which brought a touch of Ferrari 275 to the saloon market with its transaxle layout. But wait! No Alfasud? No justice!

1974 Mercedes 450SE

Production run: 1972-’80

Merc’s biggest bruiser this side of a Pullman followed the R107 SL’s style lead, finally ditching the company’s long-lived stacked-lamp design.

The suspension was equally modern: clever anti-dive geometry made a mockery of the kerb weight – and made a great platform for the following year’s 450SEL 6.9 supersaloon.

1975 Citroën CX

Production run: 1974-’89

Lancia’s Stratos might have been clearing up on the rally stage, but it was a DNS in the ’75 COTY competition. The real news was the battle for first and second. Ultimately, Citroën’s slippery DS successor easily outpaced another replacement for a 1950s/’60s icon, the Golf.

Four decades and 35m units later though, VW has probably forgotten the hurt, and everybody else has forgotten the CX.

1976 Simca 1307/8

Production run: 1975-’85

This ferrous-oxide-fest of an Anglo-French hatchback was big on space but BMW fans aren’t likely to agree with the judges that it was better than the new E21 3-series.

French-made cars got the Simca badge, but it was sold (and built) in the UK as the Chrysler Alpine, until PSA’s takeover resulted in its rebranding as a Talbot.

1977 Rover 3500

Production run: 1976-’86

Who cared that the live-rear axle SD1 was less sophisticated than the P6 it replaced when it looked like a five-door Ferrari Daytona?

Besides, punters, and BL, soon had more pressing concerns – including quality and quantity problems, thanks to a spate of strikes. Ford’s late-to-the-party Fiesta, the Blue-Oval’s first modern front driver, got the bronze gong this year.

1978 Porsche 928

Production run: 1977-’95

Edging out the first BMW 7-series and Ford’s drawn-by-a-toddler Mk2 Ford Granada, Porsche’s big GT was the first sports car to take home COTY’s top prize.

A front-mounted water-cooled V8, aluminium body and power steering meant it was going to take a while for 911 fans to come round to that car’s very different replacement.

In fact, despite a near 20-year production run, they never did.

1979 Simca-Chrysler Horizon

Production run: 1979-’86

In another contestable decision in favour of Simca-Chrysler, the drab Horizon narrowly edged out Fiat’s ‘handbuilt by robots’ Ritmo (Strada in the UK).

Maybe the Italian’s round door handles were just too weird for the judges, or perhaps they appreciated the Horizon’s unusually wide cabin, a side-effect of cash-strapped Chrysler shortening the bigger Alpine to get the job done on budget.

1980 Lancia Delta

Production run: 1979-’94

The Everest-sized mountain of praise heaped on the Integrale makes it easy to forget that the standard Delta was a star in its own right almost a decade earlier, sneaking past GM’s Opel Kadett (Vauxhall Astra) to take the win in 1980.

A bizarre Saab-Fiat agreement that later gave us the 9000/Alfa 164/Fiat Croma resulted in a Saab-badged Delta being sold in Scandinavia. Unsurprisingly, few are thought to still exist…

1981 Ford Escort Mk3

Production run: 1981-’86

A mere 11 years after Fiat’s front-wheel drive 128 had revolutionised small family cars, Ford finally dragged its Escort out of the stone age.

Ford went went one further than its GM and VW rivals, fitting independent rear suspension – not that you’d know it from the brittle ride.

The Escort spawned the XR3 and, later, the injected XR3i, plus a booted Orion to placate older customers still struggling to get used to those new-fangled tailgate things.

1982 Renault 9

Production run: 1981-’89

Renault’s three-box 9 (and its hatchback 11 alter-ego) claimed victory over GM’s bigger front-wheel drive Ascona/Cavalier in the ’82 title fight, with the Mk2 Polo coming in some way behind in third.

In engineering terms, the Renault was nothing special – but it made waves in ’83 by offering a talking trip computer, just pipping the Austin Maestro to market with the tech.

1983 Audi 100

Production run: 1982-’91

Volvo’s third-place, square-rigger 760 was definitely the sore thumb sticking out from this year’s aero-themed podium. Second spot went to Ford’s bold jelly-mould Sierra, which was overtaken in the final stretch by the Audi 100 and its flush glazing.

The 100 also featured galvanised bodywork and, later, Audi’s clever Procon-Ten safety system that pulled the steering wheel away from the driver in an accident.

1984 Fiat Uno

Production run: 1983-’98

This year’s COTY gold medal actually went to Fiat’s Uno, which sounds entirely reasonable until you remember it beat Peugeot’s iconic 205 to get there.

Both were capable cars, but while the Giugiaro-designed Uno featured the more modern engines at launch, it’s the prettier Pininfarina 205 that’s the one everyone remembers most fondly.

1985 Opel Kadett

Production run: 1984-’91

Volkswagen’s Mk2 Golf (third place in the ’84 event) had only been on sale a year when GM’s Kadett (Vauxhall Astra in the UK) arrived with a slippery teardrop body that made the VW look about as modern as an outdoor khazi.

Second spot went to Renault’s big exec, the 25, while the Lancia Thema picked up third.

1986 Ford Scorpio/Granada

Production run: 1985-’94

Not content with alienating conservative Cortina buyers with the blobby Sierra, Ford had a crack at shedding Granada fans by pulling the same trick.

In both cases it was forced to backtrack on its plan to offer only hatchback and estate versions, adding saloon versions within a couple of years.

High points included standard anti-lock brakes across the range and, unusually for the class, a four-wheel drive option.

1987 Opel Omega

Production run: 1986-’93

While Ford’s Granada jumped across to a hatchback design, and Rover had switched to front-wheel drive for the 800, GM stuck to its traditional rear-drive saloon guns for the Omega, which Brits know as the Mk2 Vauxhall Carlton.

Judges rated it above the rounded but cramped Audi 80, and BMW’s second-generation 7-series.

1988 Peugeot 405

Production run: 1987-’97

Peugeot’s first winner for almost 20 years scored 464 points, more than any other COTY champ before or since.

After a couple of years the 405’s interior rattled like an earthquake at a Mothercare store, but its handling was leagues above that of the stodgy Mk3 Cavalier.

1989 Fiat Tipo

Production run: 1988-’95

Proper three-across the back seating, a digital dashboard on posh DGT models and galvanised panels to finally silence the rust worries made the Tipo this year’s winner – and meant Fiat could boast two COTY winners in its dealer showrooms.

1990 Citroën XM

Production run: 1989-2000

Complicated, controversial and now almost completely invisible, Citroën’s CX successor was so popular with the judges it scored almost double the points of the second-place finisher, Merc’s long-overdue new SL.

1991 Renault Clio

Production run: 1990-’98

Renault’s fine supermini triumphed where Ford’s ho-hum Fiesta (third in ’90) had failed the year before.

Rumours that the judges were swayed after one-on-one meetings with Nicole from the TV ads were completely fabricated by us.

1992 Volkswagen Golf

Production run: 1991-’97

Small family cars dominated the podium in ’92, though the decision to award first place to the slow, heavy, middle-aged Mk3 Golf, surely the model’s lowest ebb, was controversial – we'd have gone for Citroën’s sweet-handling ZX, which had to make do with third.

1993 Nissan Micra

Production run: 1992-’97

Thirty COTYs after it started, a Japanese car finally claimed the top prize, when judges awarded first place to the twin-cam-equipped, Sunderland-built Micra.

That relegated Fiat’s reinvented Cinquecento to second, but the surprise of the competition was Renault’s forgettable Safrane somehow barging its way to third.

1994 Ford Mondeo

Production run: 1993-’96

Arriving just four years after the cynical Mk5 Escort, the Mondeo was nothing short of a revelation, to drive, if not to look at.

Mind you, the Ford’s wedgy Citroën Xantia rival was snapping at its heels in second place.

1995 Fiat Punto

Production run: 1993-’99

The Uno’s replacement pulled out a comfortable lead over Volkswagen’s new Polo in 1995.

Cabrio and turbocharged GT versions soon fleshed out the range, along with a rare six-speed gearbox option for the basic 1.1-litre 55.

1996 Fiat Bravo/Brava

Production run: 1995-2001

Fiat made it two in a row when the handsome hatchback Bravo and its booted Brava brother nudge ahead of the second-place Peugeot 406, an arguably more worthy winner.

Audi’s first A4 propped up the podium. Two decades later, it’s the only one of the three still going.

1997 Renault Megane Scenic

Production run: 1996-2003

Having popularised the MPV with its Espace, Renault replicated the trick a rung down the ladder to create the Megane-based Scenic, sending every other car maker scrambling to field a rival.

1998 Alfa Romeo 156

Production run: 1997-2007

Alfa’s first ever COTY winner was like a supermodel among family saloons. The judges were certainly smitten, giving it the second highest score ever dished out.

The option of a Selespeed robotised manual ’box was a nice extra, bringing F1-style shifts to the company car market.

1999 Ford Focus

Production run: 1998-2004

A sports car disguised as a family runaround, the Focus revolutionised the class with its agile handling and bold styling.

The bland Opel/Vauxhall Astra was one step behind in the competition, but miles behind in every other sense.

2000 Toyota Yaris

Production run: 1999-2005

Judges looked past the quirky six-seat Fiat Multipla’s ugly mug, rewarding its clever packaging with a second-place finish.

But when picking a winner they looked past it altogether, to Toyota’s Yaris supermini, which became only the second Japanese car to take the top honours in almost 40 years.

2001 Alfa 147

Production run: 2000-’10

In one of the closest races ever, Alfa’s 147 took this year’s trophy, topping the second-place Mondeo by a solitary point. That year’s most deserving winner, Audi’s innovative aluminium A2, languished in fourth.

2002 Peugeot 307

Production run: 2001-’05

BMW’s reimagined Mini was the car on everyone’s lips in 2002, except at that year’s COTY competition, where it managed no higher than fourth.

Not only did it lose out to the overall winner, the Peugeot 307, but somehow it was also beaten by Fiat’s rubbish Stilo. Crazy.

2003 Renault Megane

Production run: 2002-’09

Interesting to look at, but definitely not to drive, Renault’s second Megane was this year’s champ, helped to the spot by being the first small family car to earn a full five-star Euro NCAP safety rating.

We’d have picked Honda’s ingeniously versatile Jazz supermini.

2004 Fiat Panda

Production run: 2003-’12

Fiat tapped into the trend for MPV-shaped city cars with its new Panda, whose success helped drag the company out of a financial hole.

It spawned a four-wheel drive version and even a hot(ish)-hatch, the Panda 100HP, and served as a platform for another COTY winner, more of which later.

2005 Toyota Prius

Production run: 2003-’09

The first, but definitely not last, hybrid car to take the COTY crown paired a 75bhp 1.5-litre petrol engine with a 66bhp electric motor.

Citroën’s zany C4 took second and Ford’s disappointingly unambitious Mk2 Focus came third.

2006 Renault Clio

Production run: 2005-’12

A strong five-star showing in Euro NCAP safety tests helped the Mk3 Clio seal the win, becoming the first car to win COTY twice (the original Clio came first in 1991).

New upmarket kit included Renault’s credit card-shaped digital key.

2007 Ford S-Max

Production run: 2006-’15

Giving hope to downtrodden mums and dads everywhere, Ford’s surprisingly sporty-looking S-MAX proved big MPVs could handle, as well as handle seven people.

No RS version, sadly, but you could get the growly 217bhp turbo’d 2.5 from the Focus ST.

2008 Fiat 500

Production run: 2007-date

Wanting in on BMW’s booming Mini market, Fiat re-skinned its Panda in a three-door retro suit and watched the Euros – and the COTY gong – roll in.

Much less fun to drive than it looked, but the later two-cylinder twin-air amused.

2009 Opel Insignia

Production run: 2008-’17

Always chasing the Mondeo in magazine tests and the sales charts, Opel’s middleweight hit back in 2008 with a smart new set of clothes and a smart new name to help banish memories of the lacklustre Vectra.

Ford’s excellent, but slightly cramped, new Fiesta was relegated to second spot by a single point.

2010 Volkswagen Polo

Production run: 2009-’17

The perfectly reasonable but utterly passionless fifth-gen Polo charmed the judges in 2010 against some far more interesting opposition, including Toyota’s 2+1 seat IQ city car (2nd) and the charming Skoda Yeti (4th).

2011 Nissan Leaf

Production run: 2010-’17

The Leaf’s win marked the first time European Car of the Year had been awarded to a fully electric car, though its range at that time was so poor that we can’t imagine the judges had the chance to spend much time behind the wheel.

Alfa’s unremarkable Giulietta did well to snare second spot, just nine points behind, and Dacia’s no-frills Duster should have scored higher than seventh.

2012 Chevrolet Volt/Opel Ampera

Production run: 2011-’19

A third winner to feature electric power, but this one was a little different.

The Volt combined a four-cylinder petrol engine with an electric motor, but the motor did almost all the driving – the petrol engine’s main function was to act as a generator to charge the battery.

2013 Volkswagen Golf

Production run: 2012-’19

VW’s slick Mk7 Golf romped home in first place with more than double the points awarded to the second place finisher.

But it’s the identity of that second-place vehicle that’s the real eyebrow-raiser here: the Toyota GT-86 sports car.

A joint project with Subaru, which sold its own version badged BRZ, it was light, only moderately quick and massive fun. Definitely a sports car in tune with the times – though sales figures say otherwise.

2014 Peugeot 308

Production run: 2013-date

Peugeot’s Golf-fighter saw off two innovative electric cars to take the 2014 win: the second-place BMW i3 and the obscenely rapid, supercar-scaring Tesla Model S.

The 308 lacked innovation by comparison, but it did spawn Peugeot’s first credible Golf GTi rival in over a decade.

2015 Volkswagen Passat

Production run: 2014-date

The Passat’s been around even longer than the Golf, the first one appearing in 1973, though it took until 2015 and eight generations for it to take its first COTY win.

The Ford’s Modeo – the VW’s chief rival and itself a previous winner – lagged way back in fourth.

2016 Opel/Vauxhall Astra

Production run: 2015-date

Slightly smaller and vastly lighter than its predecessor, the latest Astra beat Volvo’s XC90 SUV to the top spot.

Despite the Ford Focus highlighting the benefits of multi-link rear suspension almost 20 years earlier, GM stuck with a simple twist-beam rear end, though posh versions added a Watts linkage for better handling.

2017 Peugeot 3008

Production run: 2016-date

The 2010s was, and is, all about the crossover, a vehicle that blends car-like dynamics with the raised ground clearance and higher driving position of an SUV.

This second 3008 was certainly less hideous than the first, but still no oil painting compared with the second-place Alfa Giulia saloon, which finished a mere 23 points behind.

2018 Volvo XC40

Production run: 2017-date

Reinvigorated by investment from Chinese car giant Geely, Volvo was on a roll by 2018, and the XC40 bringing home the Swedish firm's first COTY gold underlined its success.

Seat’s Ibiza supermini nabbed second, and the BMW 5-series, third. But Alfa’s first SUV, the Stelvio, couldn’t muster more than seventh.

2019 Jaguar I-Pace

Production run: 2018-date

In the closest competition ever, Jaguar’s radical electric I-Pace tied with Alpine’s A110 sports car on 250 points.

The deadlock was broken by counting the number of top marks (18 for the Jag, 16 for the Alpine), bringing Jag its first win.

But almost as big a story was the third-place finish for the Kia Ceed, just just three points behind the top two and proving how far the Koreans have come.