For the first time in ten years, a Japanese car has become the best car in Europe

Anna Tkach

AutoPortal editorial team

1,847 views 2 min read

The best car of the year 2021 in Europe was the Toyota Yaris. This is the first winning model of Japanese production in the last 55 years and the fourth in the entire history of the competition (which is currently 55 years old).

The closest rival – the Fiat 500 electric car – was beaten by Toyota Yaris by as many as 26 points (266 vs 240). Accordingly, Fiat took 2nd place. As jury member Frank Janssen noted during the winners announcement broadcast on YouTube, the Japanese subcompact hatchback was helped to win by a combination of eco-friendly hybrid engines and a sporty character, as well as the presence of the hot GR Yaris version.

In third place was the Cupra Formentor crossover with 239 points, followed by the Volkswagen ID.3 electric hatchback (224 points), the Skoda Octavia liftback (199), the Land Rover Defender SUV (164) and the Citroen C4 hatchback (143).

The cars were evaluated by 59 journalists from 22 European countries. Last year, they named the Peugeot 208 the best car in Europe, and the overall list of winners in the history of the competition is as follows:

• 1964 Rover 2000

• 1965 Austin 1800

• 1966 Renault 16

• 1967 Fiat 124

• 1968 NSU Ro80

• 1969 Peugeot 504

• 1970 Fiat 128

• 1971 Citroën GS

• 1972 Fiat 127

• 1973 Audi 80

• 1974 Mercedes-Benz 450

• 1975 Citroën CX