One of the most coveted titles in the European car industry is the International Car of the Year and this year the new Peugeot 308 has been crowned “Car of the Year”.
This award is voted on by a jury of 58 journalists, representing 22 European countries. The major announcement was made on the eve of the 84th Geneva Motor Show, which opens its door to the world press tomorrow.
A total of 30 new models from American, Korean, European and Japanese manufacturers, which went on sale in Europe during 2013, were eligible for the Car of the Year 2014 award. The jury has just now delivered its verdict on the seven finalist models, pre-selected in December. The final votes were: Peugeot 308 - 307; BMW i3 - 223; Tesla Model S - 216; Citroën C4 Picasso - 182; Mazda3 - 180; Skoda Octavia - 172; and Mercedes-Benz S-Class - 170.
Receiving the award from Hakan Matson, the president of the jury, Maxime Picat, Peugeot Brand CEO declared: “With the new Peugeot 308, we were convinced that we had achieved a leap in concept, technology and quality, which would soon allow it a place on the podium for the category in Europe. The prestigious 2014 “Car of the Year” award, which I receive today in the names of all of those that contributed towards the development and launch of the model, is the best confirmation of this”.
The new 308 is the 4th Peugeot model to be awarded the European Car of the Year award. It comes after the Peugeot 307 in 2002, the 405 in 1988 and the 504 in 1969. Produced at Sochaux, the brand’s historic cradle, the new 308 was launched in Europe during the last four months of 2013 and arrived in Irish Dealerships in late December.
From this spring, the new 308 range will be expanded with the introduction of a second body style, the classy and spacious Peugeot 308 SW and with the arrival of new petrol and diesel engines.
