Car of the Year - Finalists
The 2009 European Car of the Year will be announced on Monday November 17. Andrew English, one of 59 CotY judges, gives his assessment of the finalists and tells us where his votes will be going.
It’s always tough, but choosing a favourite from this year’s Car of the Year finalists has proved almost impossible. I was disappointed that the Jaguar XF and BMW 7-series didn’t make the final seven, but those that did are all very good if not exceptional in their own right. The only way to choose a winner was to approach from the opposite direction, like Sherlock Holmes’s backward reasoning in the Sign Of The Four (1890): “When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”
So in reverse order we start with the Alfa Romeo MiTo. This tiny Fiat Punto-based beauty goes on sale in January 2009. The 155bhp, 1.4 turbo is the pick of the bunch and you’ll be pleased to know that the cabin is as painstakingly wrought as the exterior, with gorgeous figure-hugging seats and loads of dials and switches. Sadly the chassis lets the car down. The steering is vague, the springing is stiff and the lack of wheel travel means bumps crash through to the unforgiving bumpstops. The Q2 dynamic control system acts on the brakes to give an effect a little like that of a limited-slip differential and prevent terminal nose-on understeer and very good it is, too, at least on the track, although it gets a bit too clever when pushed hard on a bumpy road.
Verdict: to see it is to love it, but to drive it is to collect the divorce papers.
On to the new Renault Mégane, whose launch this autumn set new standards in mis-timing. After the grande derriere of the previous model, it’s easy to dismiss this new five-door hatch as dull. And so it is, but the quality and fit of the panels is impressive. Inside it’s the same, with immaculately fitted grey-on-grey trim – yawn. Front-seat accommodation is generous, with lots of storage space, but the rear is very cramped, particularly leg room. Unlike the old model, the boot is huge (so that’s where all the space went). On the road the Mégane is resolutely French, with a slightly over-assisted feel to the major controls, but a great ride and pretty good handling. The brakes are too sharp, however, and overall it doesn’t bring much to the party.
Verdict: feels like a Renault designed and built by Nissan. Which is exactly what it is.
The Citroën C5 has been lauded for taking the company on from its quirky roots. A German car built by the French is far from the truth, however, because the C5 is far better than that. On Citroën’s patented hydropneumatic suspension it rides well and handles reasonably, although the frame wobbles over bad bumps and it understeers into bends. The C5 is all about the journey, however, and that’s where the troubles start. While the cabin is commodious and comfortable, the C5 has neither the sleek exterior style of the bigger C6 nor the innovative and attractive interior of the C6 or the smaller C4. It’s as if Citroën has a kit of parts to make a perfect French tourer but only uses a few on each car.
Verdict: a welcome move forward but too compromised in this environment.
I really like the Vauxhall Insignia. It’s the first appearance of GM’s new mid-sized world car and while we are going to see this chassis with a lot of different badges on sale all around the world (assuming GM itself survives), the Insignia proves that this doesn’t have to be a recipe for insipid design and lacklustre handling. Then there’s the ride and handling, more relaxed than its non-premium rival the Ford Mondeo, but just as effective. The cabin is clearly influenced by VW’s Passat; the centre console is beautifully designed and the seats are comfortable and supportive, although there are some awful colour and trim combinations that must be avoided. Best of the engines is the 2.0-litre turbo, which is economical and powerful. The 2.0 diesel option comes with a number of different power outputs but they all suffer from vibration at low revs. Rumours of the collapse of sales in this sector have been greatly exaggerated and the Insignia shows the way forward.
Verdict: cost savings and careful design make the Insignia a serious contender in a shrinking market.
That leaves my three favourites this year, the first being the Skoda Superb. I’m still not convinced by the hatchback that becomes a boot mechanism, even if Skoda has made a better fist of it than BMW has with next year’s Progressive Activity Sedan. Seems to me this feature is only really of interest to the hackney trades. Nor did any car maker get rich offering excess rear seat space over a normal adult’s needs; few buyers ever travel in the back. The Superb is also ugly, as if its designers lost the courage of their convictions half way along the coachwork. With the bad out of the way, however, there’s barely space to list all the good, of which there is a lot The build quality, the simple, well-made cabin, the rear space and the lack of artifice are exemplary. Far from austere, this is a simple and straightforward car, with a range of VW Group engines that are modern and economical. It’s the ride quality that really marks the Superb out as, er, superb. Without recourse to trick dampers or electronic geegaws it rides over broken British roads sublimely.
Verdict: superb ride makes a big, ugly car a real pleasure to drive.
Next up is the new Ford Fiesta, with an all-new chassis and body and a range of economical small engines including a brilliantly smooth 1.6 petrol. The ride is honed for British roads and it shows, handling bumps and potholes with an aplomb that few can match. Perhaps the handling isn’t quite as sharp as the old model, but the electronically assisted steering is still the standard-setter. It’s a curate’s egg of an interior, with great design details but some flimsy parts that raise doubts about longevity. The rear seats are cramped, but Ford resolutely refuses to increase the size of its small car until it becomes, er, a big one.
Verdict: it feels wrong such a fine car in a (very close) second place, but in the end only one car can win.
And so the sixth generation Volkswagen Golf gets my vote. Remember those early Eighties Golf ads? In the current climate they are starting to make sense again. “This is the man who bet a million on black when it came up red,” they ran. “This is the man who married a sex kitten just as she turned into a cat. This is the man who moved into the smart money just as the smart money moved out. This is the man who drives a Volkswagen. Everyone must have something in life he can rely on.”
The interior is as good as you will find in prestige cars a size up. The new VW Group diesel is one of the world’s most advanced and economical oil-burners. The tiny 1.4 TSI supercharged and turbocharged petrol engine is so complex and jewel-like that even Honda hasn’t dared make one. OK, the chassis is the same as the MkV, but this is still only one of two cars in its class to have fully independent rear suspension and it shows on the bumpy roads around Northampton. Not that you’ll hear anything, as the considerable noise insulation even includes a sound deadening layer in the windscreen. OK, the Golf’s handling is less sharp than a Focus and it’s more expensive, but in a world of trouble and strife, when the smart money’s gone and it all came up on red, you can close the door on it all and drive away in comfort and silence.
Verdict: the best Golf for a long time, perhaps ever. However improbable, it’s my Car of the Year.
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